Austin Neal of Above + Beyond Cancer shares how the Des Moines-area nonprofit helps cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers heal in mind, body, and spirit through free programs like pole walking, rowing, cycling, and tai chi. He explains why everyone is considered a survivor from the moment of diagnosis and how the organization supports young adults moving on from pediatric cancer care. Austin also previews the organization's sold-out 15th anniversary gala and shares how to get involved.
Austin Neal, annual giving and outreach manager for Above + Beyond Cancer, returns to talk with Deacon Mark Campbell about life after a cancer diagnosis. Founded in 2011 by Des Moines oncologist Dr. Richard Deming, Above + Beyond Cancer is a cancer survivorship program offering free classes and community for patients, survivors, and caregivers, with plans to expand statewide.
Austin walks through the programming, all of it free: pole walking in Waukee, Windsor Heights, and Des Moines; the Row + Renew rowing club; tai chi; cooking and nutrition classes; a weekly spin class with Dr. Deming at the MercyOne center in Clive; and a cycle club that rides routes across the metro. Above + Beyond Cancer serves adults 18 and up and partners with Children's Cancer Connection so kids diagnosed with cancer can move into its young adult group, which is planned by young adult survivors themselves.
Austin shares what he's seen in his first months: participants who say they don't know where they'd be without this community, including his own father, who has joined pole walking and tai chi during treatment. And he explains a key idea: you're a survivor from the moment you're diagnosed, and anyone who has faced cancer, whether last week or decades ago, is welcome.
The 15th anniversary gala (Thursday, November 12, at the Hilton Des Moines Downtown) is sold out, but you can still join the waitlist. Find programs, the class calendar, and ways to give or volunteer at Above + Beyond Cancer, and free cooking and nutrition videos on YouTube.
Heard on the Catholic Morning Show, weekdays at 7 a.m. Central on Iowa Catholic Radio. More at IowaCatholicRadio.com.
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