![\"Hannah](\"https:\/\/sduptownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/komen-san-diego-honorary-breast-cancer-survivor-Hannah-Martine-breast-wishes-party-photo-courtesy-of-Hannah-Martine_1-e1476994589619.jpg\")
<\/a>Komen SD took her right into their fold. They provided her with support and financial services, since Martine only had one source of income, and if she wasn\u2019t working there was no money coming in. They pointed her in the right direction for the resources she needed.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy aunt used to say, \u2018If we all link arms together and kick, we\u2019ll keep each other afloat,\u2019\u201d Martine said.<\/p>\n
She credits Komen SD and a terrific group of friends for keeping her afloat. Now Martine\u2019s cancer is in remission: With stage 4, that means the cancer is never fully eliminated, but the immune system is currently strong enough to keep it at bay.<\/p>\n
Komen in San Diego<\/strong><\/p>\n Susan G. Komen San Diego opened 21 years ago to help the uninsured and underinsured receive the services they need in the fight against breast cancer. Since then, the affiliate has raised more than $11.5 million to help local women and their families.<\/p>\n One of their primary fundraisers is Race for the Cure, happening on Sunday, Nov. 6, in Balboa Park.<\/p>\n Of every dollar raised through the race, 25 cents goes into the national Susan G. Komen Foundation pool to support research for new drugs and treatment and ultimately, a cure. The other 75 cents stays in house and funds the Komen SD mission. None of the race profits goes to support the administrative or marketing side \u2014 all<\/em> of that is covered by corporate sponsors.<\/p>\n Komen SD provides mammograms and diagnostic screenings. They\u2019ve helped lobby for legislation such as the recently amended Every Woman Counts. They offer assistance with food, finances, transportation, and education for parents and families.<\/p>\n That\u2019s a lot for one organization to take on and do well. But here\u2019s the kicker \u2014 Komen SD doesn\u2019t provide these services themselves: They work as a giant network to get women the resources they need.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re like a navigation system,\u201d explained Laura Farmer, Sherman Komen SD president and CEO. \u201cWe\u2019re not the experts [on services], but we\u2019re experts on breast cancer, we\u2019re experts on the needs in San Diego.\u201d<\/p>\n How does it work?<\/strong><\/p>\n Komen SD is an expert at identifying a need and finding a way to fill it \u2014 \u201cbridging barriers to care,\u201d as Sherman puts it. Every two years, they have a \u201cneeds assessment\u201d summit. The leadership determines what the holes in services are, and what San Diego women and families specifically need in the fight against breast cancer. This time around, those barriers that need to be bridged include under-insurance, lack of time and transportation, illiteracy, low finances, diagnostics, lack of support, issues with HMOs and cultural barriers.<\/p>\n That\u2019s how Community Health Imaging Centers was able to get up and running the first and only Mobile Mammography Coach in San Diego. One of the problems Komen SD identified was early detection, which is a key to longer life expectancy. However, it was a hassle for women to schedule the appointment, go down to the hospital, experience the uncomfortable machine; plus, you have to have the money or insurance to pay for it.<\/p>\n So with funding from Komen SD, the Imaging Centers built a portable mammogram \u2014 a bus equipped with Hologic Genius 3D Tomosynthesis technology to detect tiny breast carcinomas: catch cancer before it spreads! The coach has shown up at grocery stores, churches, shopping outlets and special events \u2014 and is always free.<\/p>\n You\u2019ve got a friend in me<\/strong><\/p>\n Along with all the physical services, Komen SD also has built an emotional support network \u2014 a safety net for anyone on this journey.<\/p>\n That\u2019s one of the reasons Martine first reached out to them. Martine is this year\u2019s honorary Survivor of the Year for the Race \u2013 and shocked to be in the limelight.<\/p>\n \u201cI always felt like I was more of the background dancer versus the karaoke singer,\u201d Martine said. \u201cBut this is my way of turning a negative into a positive. I\u2019m trying to bust the myth of what a cancer survivor looks like.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/a>What Komen SD doesn\u2019t do is assume that they know the best solution to meet that need. Once a year, the organization sends out detailed requests for grant proposals from local nonprofits. It\u2019s a blind and \u201cextremely competitive\u201d grant process, Sherman said.<\/p>\n