ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A helping hand can mean more than you know.
James Ryan knows that firsthand. In 2019, his ex-wife Karen was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Even though they had been divorced for many years, Ryan went back to New York to care for her during surgery, chemo and radiation.
Ryan says his head was spinning the entire time and he constantly asked himself: "What's the next step? Where can I go to find help?"
He couldn't have answered some of those questions without a helping hand of his own that came from The Don Litzelman Foundation.
Foundation president Brian Kinel says the organization helps families of people diagnosed with cancer find support, so they can focus on caring for their loved ones.
If you go to the foundation's website, you'll find a library of information to help navigate what is often a traumatic experience.
"We thought that the way we could help the most people would be if we did that research for them," Kinel said.
The goal of the site is for users to walk away knowing more about the type of cancer you or your loved one is battling. Other information includes where to get the best treatment, how to access financial aid and find local support groups to help throughout the journey.
"There are a lot of small organizations just like us that were started because a loved one passed away from cancer," Kinel said.
The foundation's loved one was Don Litzelman, a college friend of Brian and James, who died from brain cancer in 2012.
"He was a great athlete. He was good-looking, had good grades, he was a leader," said Kinel.
Litzelman's life was the driving force behind something that has become both helpful and hopeful.
"Every day, it gets a little bit better," said Ryan. "Don't give up. Never stop asking questions. Advocate for yourself."
Ryan's ex-wife is now cancer-free, and he's using the foundation's website to help support her on that journey.
If you would like more information about the foundation, click here.
Do you know someone who is making a difference, or is there a business or nonprofit going above and beyond to help others? Send us your ideas for stories of "Communities that KARE" in the form below:
Watch more Communities that KARE:
Watch all of the latest stories from Communities that KARE in our YouTube playlist:
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about the KARE 11+ app for Apple TV in the Apple App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.