BOSTON (WHDH) - The Ansin Foundation is making a generous donation to a local home that gives patients battling cancer a place to stay that is close to the treatment they need.
The American Cancer Society opened the Hope Lodge in 2008 to offer a comfortable living environment situated near world-class treatment centers for up to 45 patients and their families at no cost to them.
On behalf of the Ansin Foundation, WHDH-TV’s General Manager Jimmy Rogers presented Hope Lodge with a check for $20,000 to help them continue their work supporting those who need it most.
The Ansin Foundation is the charitable arm of the Ansin family which owns Channel 7.
“We really appreciate all the hard work you do here at Hope Lodge, so on behalf of the Ansin Foundation please accept this donation of $20,000 to continue the great work here at Hope Lodge,” said WHDH’s General Manager Jimmy Rogers.
To current and former residents, the donation means a lot.
Cancer survivor Lauren Mannarino lived in the Lodge last fall while she was focusing on getting better.
“It’s kind of a little support system, and the staff here are just wonderful,” she said. “It feels so good to be here as opposed to just staying in hotel rooms.”
Instead of traveling all the way from her home in Maine, she was able to stay close to where she needed to be.
“It is amazing that you don’t have to worry about travel when you are a cancer patient,” Mannarino said. “My God, how lucky we were to be able to stay here.”
Lisa Gohra was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2017 and her doctors back home in West Springfield told her they were not optimistic.
“They told me I would lose my vocal cords, it was too far gone,” she said.
But, she wanted a second opinion. She drove 87 miles to Dana Farber, and stayed at the Lodge with her husband, free of charge during her treatments.
“Not only did they save my life, they preserved my vocal cords,” Gohra said.
Roanoke, Virginia resident Cheryl Crowell is one of the patients who is currently staying in the home while she receives treatment.
“It’s wonderful. It’s a home away from home. It really is,” she said. “It just warms my heart, I just feel so grateful. For people to do that for us, it warms my heart.”
There are more than 30 Hope Lodge locations throughout the United States and Puerto Rico.
“The work that they do here, for people going through the toughest times of their life, it’s incredible,” said Rogers.
For information on how to make a donation to the Hope Lodge, click here.
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