As the Hirshberg Foundation brings our vibrant community of supporters and fundraisers together for the 26th LA Cancer Challenge, we are thrilled to share that this year’s Honorary Starter will be 21-year pancreatic cancer survivor, Roberta Luna!
For two decades, Roberta and her beloved husband Vic have been on a crusade to give back to their community and to embrace patients and caregivers going through a journey that the Lunas know all too well. “Through my experience with this horrific disease, I believe I am here to help those who have also been affected by pancreatic cancer, to hopefully inspire them and give them much needed hope.” Putting her beliefs into action, Roberta is a volunteer, activist, patient advocate, guest speaker at awareness events and survivor panelist at the Hirshberg Foundation’s Symposium for Pancreatic Cancer. This year we are thrilled to welcome her as our LACC Honorary Starter, and we invite you to register and join us too!
Over the years, Roberta has shared her harrowing story of how pancreatic cancer took her father, her mother and her uncle before impacting her own personal health by her early 40’s. “I decided then and there I wasn’t going to die; I was going to fight this with everything I had.” Every step of the way, Roberta has stood strong as an advocate for patients. Most recently, she has given a voice to fellow survivors through her podcast: Living Hope; Your Journey with Pancreatic Cancer. Living Hope is a weekly podcast sharing the real-life journeys of those affected by this disease. Her goal is to educate, raise awareness, provide hope, and a spark of inspiration for survivors and caregivers. The Living Hope podcast is also a returning sponsor of the LA Cancer Challenge this year.
Today, Roberta instills hope in newly diagnosed patients and long-term survivors alike. “Hopefully, you find inspiration from my story about how, through the good, the bad and the ugly, we can weather the storm with the support of our loved ones, our family, ‘our purple family’ and the many people we meet along this often-difficult journey.”
We are honored and humbled to call her a friend of the Foundation. As the Hirshberg Foundation shares its LACC mantra to “Fight to the Finish,” there are no better words than a quote Roberta shared years ago. “As I lace up my purple boxing gloves for the 19th time, I challenge pancreatic cancer to put on its gloves and prepare for the next round…I am still standing and I’m not giving up!”