Soon after receiving a diagnosis of stage 4 ovarian cancer, I knew I needed to talk with a survivor. I learned about Tenaciously Teal through friends my church, and reached out through social media. Within an hour, Tarah Warren became my "first responder,"offering a phone number. That conversation was how I first learned about “Brave Shave.” "Brave Shave" for Alan (my amazing husband whose head was shorn simultaneously with mine) and me was a rousing celebration of support on a sunny Saturday morning in the (then) downtown Oklahoma City headquarters of TTeal, with our daughter and about two dozen friends cheering us on. Honestly, there was little "brave" in play (on my part) at the time, but knowing hair loss is inevitable with one of the two chemotherapy drugs I am receiving, it offered a rare opportunity to get out in front of the disease and “fight like a girl!”

Tarah, founder and executive director of TTeal, is herself a survivor of ovarian cancer. She enlisted her network of family and friends to help

gather donations and assemble “care packs,” and began delivering these love gifts to other patients on her treatment days at OKC’s Stephenson

Cancer Center, while attached to the "tree" that carried her own infusion drugs. This was the start of Tenaciously Teal, which now reaches out to

ovarian cancer fighters across Oklahoma and the country. A board of directors and web of volunteers offer services including make-overs, photography and hospitality for “Brave Shave” events, as well as hands-on assembly and delivery/mailing of care packs, or simply a much-needed voice

of encouragement.

Tenaciously Teal (tteal.org) is an organization worthy of respect and support from anyone willing to "Fight Like a Girl" for women who are fighting for their lives.