Cancer in Sacramento: American Cancer Society Reimagines Collaboration for Cancer Prevention.

Alexis Padilla: [00:00:00] One in two men and one in three women will experience a cancer diagnosis in their lifetime. Almost 30% of cancer patients enter food insecurity during their cancer journey, so that's not coming to the table already. Food insecure, that's a whole nother ballgame, but actually entering a state of food insecurity through a cancer diagnosis, we're the behind the scenes beast that you want in your corner, but not necessarily interacting on an everyday basis.

Unless you then become diagnosed with cancer,

Jeff Holden: welcome to the nonprofit Podcast Network here. Our purpose and passion are simple to highlight the incredible nonprofits that make our community stronger. Each episode is a chance for these organizations to tell their story in their words, sharing not just what they do, but why it matters [00:01:00] to the people they serve, to their supporters, and to all of us who believe in the power of community.

Through podcasting, we hope to amplify their voices, inspire connection, and give them one more tool to reach the hearts of donors, partners, and neighbors alike. This work is made possible through the generous support of our founding partners captrust, offering fiduciary advice for endowments and foundations serving Sacramento, Roseville, and Folsom, and online@captrust.com.

And Western Health Advantage, a local not-for-profit health plan that believes healthcare is more than coverage. It's about caring From supporting the American Heart Association to making arts and wellness accessible for all. Western Health Advantage truly delivers healthcare with heart. Learn more@westernhealth.com.

I'm proud to welcome our newest partner, core executive leadership and comprehensive support services. Working in it [00:02:00] so you can work on it. Visit cx OR e.com. What if I told you that half of all men and a third of all women will face cancer in their lifetime? That's the reality, and it's why today's conversation matters.

This episode, I welcome Alexis Padilla. Executive Director of the American Cancer Society for Sacramento and the surrounding 23 counties. Alexis brings us inside one of the most recognized and misunderstood organizations in the world. We explore how American Cancer Society is fueling groundbreaking research, providing hands-on patient support, from rides to treatment to free lodging.

Fighting for policy change so everyone has a fair shot at preventing, detecting and surviving cancer. We also dive into Cultivate a bold new, sacramental born [00:03:00] initiative that connects food, nutrition, and cancer prevention in innovative ways. This episode isn't just about statistics. It's about hope, community and the real people who make sure no one fights cancer alone.

If cancer has touched your life or someone you love, this conversation matters. It just might change how you think about what's possible in the fight against this disease. Alexis Padilla, welcome to the Nonprofit Podcast Network.

Alexis Padilla: Thank you. Thanks for having me.

Jeff Holden: Boy, it's been some time, hasn't it? We've been talking about this for a while and probably to your benefit, 'cause you're relatively new to the region, right?

Alexis Padilla: Yeah, about, well, I've lived here for eight years, but in this role and serving this community for a year and a half.

Jeff Holden: Yeah. So here we are now. Better than six months ago.

Alexis Padilla: Yes, yes. For sure. For sure. Which is

Jeff Holden: great. Yours is an organization of mammoth proportion. Everybody knows the American Cancer [00:04:00] Society.

It's such a feared disease in so many ways. It strums up a lot of emotion, a lot of anxiety, a lot of angst when people hear it. But the good news is that quelling that fear is just the tip of the iceberg of what the American Cancer Society does, and you're built on a platform of pillars.

Mm-hmm.

If you could walk us through what those pillars look like.

As an overview, and then we'll dig into it a little bit deeper as we get going.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah, I love that we started with this because most people that we chat with have no idea what we do as an organization, but of course, recognize the brand we've been around for. It's 114 years now. Mm-hmm. But yeah, so I, I like to explain it as with some examples that were given to me when I first started, when I was trying to learn about it.

And so yes, we have three, I'd say core pillars of our work. The first and probably most well known is our research arm, right? So understanding cancer, studying what is needed to understand it and treat, prevent. Disease [00:05:00] in general. I think, you know, there's over over 50 Nobel Prize winners from the research we funded and all of that then bleeds into our patient support pillar.

And so patient support born out of the understanding of science. What we learned through science is the need to, how do we step up and help patients through. Cancer journey. Mm-hmm. And scientifically, the biggest hurdles universally are transportation. Transportation and lodging. And Interesting. So, yeah.

Yeah. And so we started out there, what can we do in these spaces? And from there, over the last several decades, grown into a whole library of resources for patients of how do we support. People from the minute they're diagnosed all the way through into survivorship, which now means a lot longer in lifespan than it used to even 10 years ago.

And so constantly evolving and learning as we go. And of course, again, fed through the understanding of research and science. And then the third arm being our policies. So American Cancer Society, cancer Action Network, or can for short. Is [00:06:00] our third arm. And basically that's all things policy reform. So at our core, we believe every single human being should have the right to detect, treat, prevent cancer in general.

And so we advocate daily, it's a full-time job for that team to be advocating for policy reform at both the local, state and federal level so that everybody has that access

Jeff Holden: in the distribution of funds. And I know this wasn't a question that we had initially. Do you have any idea what that looks like?

In the overall allocation from Oh, percentage wise? From from research to advocacy?

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. I can, I mean, I don't know the exact percentage. I know, you know, for example, with research, we have a thousand in-house researchers.

Jeff Holden: Wow.

Alexis Padilla: But then we also fund research into different institutions or the largest funder of research outside of the federal government.

Study all cancers. So we're cancer agnostic. And then the patient support, which is a newer team, right? So understanding, I mean, it goes all the way down to fundable opportunities like [00:07:00] our PAWS program, which is therapy Dogs for cancer patients, you know? Mm-hmm. So, or we have our Road to Recovery program, which is free rides to treatment.

And ironically, elk Grove actually has some of the highest concentration in the state of California for usage of our road to recovery, and it's volunteer based, so we have. A big mighty powerhouse of volunteers behind us too, and helping us deliver a lot of the work. But from a funding perspective, I would have to actually look into the percentage of that.

A CS can too is also a separate org that does their own pillar of fundraising as well.

Jeff Holden: Yeah. Let me ask you something about that Elk Grove. Is it, because, I mean, we all know that's a, you know, satellite of Sacramento, it's a suburb. Mm-hmm. Is it just because the orientation of volunteerism is so high, not because there's an excess.

Of cancer cases,

Alexis Padilla: correct? Yeah. So I mean, I think it's, from what I've learned, 'cause it was a mystery when I first started, right? Why we had such incredible numbers in Elk Grove. You know, one, it's because it's [00:08:00] volunteer. It's people volunteering their time and gas money, you know, to be driving people to and from their treatment.

I think it's the trickle effect of you tell your friend, you're so fulfilled by this opportunity. They jump on the bandwagon with you. So word of mouth progression. You also have healthcare systems there that are talking about the opportunity to patients. So you have utilization of the resource.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: You have. I think it's, we've met a couple drivers. I met this one driver and my first question's always, you know, why, what makes, what prompts this? And the guy just said, I love driving. I was like, oh, that wasn't what I was expecting. But you know, there's, it brings so many different people to the table and he is on his like 300th ride last year.

Wow.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. Wow. Good for him. Elk groves. I mean, I think it's that. That's great to hear. Ripple

Alexis Padilla: effect. Yeah.

Jeff Holden: It's just great to hear. If there's one pillar of greatest interaction, which would it be? And, and by that I mean it from the the patient perspective. Where would I find myself most frequently when I connect with the [00:09:00] organization?

Alexis Padilla: Yeah, I like that question because it also feeds into why people don't understand the depth of what we do in the cancer space. So. I was chatting with someone the other day and they said, you don't toot your horn enough, like for us as an organization. And I thought that's a great way to put it because, you know, simultaneously when I was coming into this role, someone told me that I'd be hard pressed to find a cancer case that didn't intersect with a CS in some capacity from start to finish.

Mm-hmm. So I think it's understanding, like, for example, for us women, when you get a, a mammogram. A CS has touched that. We funded the research that shows that the mammogram is the most efficient way to detect breast cancer. Mm-hmm. So you're not gonna link that automatically to a CS When I get my mammogram, I just say, thanks, Kaiser.

Right. For allowing me the opportunity to screen for cancer. So I think we're, we're the behind the scenes beast that you want in your corner, but not necessarily interacting on an [00:10:00] everyday basis. Unless you then become diagnosed with cancer. So then I would look at us, you know, our cancer.org is visited every day, so, and for the

Jeff Holden: benefit cancer.org is the website.

Mm-hmm. Uur L Yes.

Alexis Padilla: Yep. Exactly. Which

Jeff Holden: is a massive site. Massive what? Comprehensive. Massive site.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. I mean. We would then intersect with anybody touched by cancer or looking for answers. Right? So you think of how much your life is turned upside down. With a cancer diagnosis, you instantly wanna learn more.

Mm-hmm. About your specific cancer. I mean, we go down into every detail of every cancer we've studied, and we have a hundred, I didn't even know this. We have 120 page caretaker guide. You know, I, I, now I blast that from the rooftops. Anytime somebody tells me their loved one has been diagnosed, you know, definitely have an 800 number that's open twenty four seven.

You can call anytime of day night. It can be, I am nervous about, worried about my spouse. It could be I just got this new medication. I wanna ask somebody else's opinion on it. It could be literally any [00:11:00] question under the sun. And it's run by real people. And we also have. They can both from the hotline number but also digitally we have, you can type in your zip code and it, a whole list of resources will pop up to you.

I tried it when I first started and I had over 2,600 resources. Wow. And this just lists a lot of just the available community support that's around, but also very specific directly to cancer too. So then I think that's when your interaction with us as a brand becomes more intimate.

Jeff Holden: Brand is a perfect segue to the next question because the brand is so iconic.

It's so pervasive, so agnostic, so aware to anything. Cancer, that's the first thing you think of American Cancer Society.

Mm-hmm.

Maybe not directly to the URL, but you know, and you recognize that little symbol that you've got. I don't know quite what that is. Yeah. But it's so, so aware for so many people.

That has its pros and cons sometimes. [00:12:00] How does it work to your benefit? And if there are any negatives, what do you see

Alexis Padilla: to our benefit? I would say, you know, I don't, we aren't the small nonprofit, right? Mm-hmm. So we're national in scope, actually global in what we influence. But, so there's that brand recognition.

I don't have to explain, you know, what we do. Mm-hmm. As soon as I say American Cancer Society, there's recognition. I would say the disadvantage is kind of what we already talked about, where of not knowing or understanding what we do as an organization, but also I think specifically for our region, and I'll, I'll be as bold to say it, is that there's so much interest in impact locally that when you think of us as a brand, you think, well, they, they're not local, they're national.

The reality is, is we actually are very much so local and have so much potential to expand in what we could be capable of achieving here. Mm-hmm. If we're brought to the table like a, like a, what would be coined, you know, in air quotes, a local [00:13:00] nonprofit.

Jeff Holden: Yes.

Alexis Padilla: I'm also a big believer that you need both. You know, you need, you need the small mom and pop, which you know, and you need the big behemoth.

Jeff Holden: Well, and we're gonna get that opportunity to touch on that. Yeah. Because that is significant. And, and we do see that with the other large organizations that we speak with. You know, the Salvation Armies? Mm-hmm. Or, or American Heart Association. The, you are the large, large, global piece of it all with the local influence and activity.

If it's only recent that there's been a, a refocus, let's say on Sacramento, since you've come back a little over a year and a half, year and a half ago. You were a subset of the Bay Area, if I'm not mistaken, right? Sacramento? A couple

Alexis Padilla: times. Yeah. Kind of in and out. In

Jeff Holden: and out. What today, now is the geography that you're responsible for?

Alexis Padilla: For what

Jeff Holden: is considered Sacramento.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. So we're a year and a half into being what is coined investment market. So the understanding that if we put [00:14:00] an org chart in place, so I'm actually the first executive director we've ever had in this region, but we have a campaign that's been here almost 30 years, so we've definitely had presence here.

Mm-hmm. It's. Definitely peaked and valued. COVID was really a big hit for us too here locally, as you mentioned, being part of the Bay Area is tricky. We all know culturally we're very different.

Jeff Holden: So much better. Yeah,

Alexis Padilla: so much better. And like staff footprint. So I actually came into an almost entirely vacant team, and I mean, the pro to that is the people who work alongside you every day.

And we're just shaking it up, right? We're trying new things. How do we show up for this community in new and creative ways, while still understanding what we can do as an organization and how we partner with healthcare systems, with community clinics, food banks, um, I mean, you name it, we want to. To work cohesively together and we're

Jeff Holden: gonna get Yeah, to some of the creative and innovative ways of things that you're doing.

You asked me

Alexis Padilla: the geography too, and I realized And the geography, how big? Yeah, how big? We're 23 counties? Yes. So just a [00:15:00] small, you know, I'm just kidding. We, I think the easiest way to say it is everything but the Bay Area and Napa.

Jeff Holden: Okay.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. They got the tech and the wine and we've get everything else,

Jeff Holden: right?

We have wine, do a little bit on our foothills, so we do have

Alexis Padilla: wine.

Jeff Holden: We recently had American Red Cross in. Okay. Similar, similar 26 counties. So you guys both have these huge,

Alexis Padilla: it makes sense. Geographies. I mean, it doesn't, it doesn't, but I, you know, for a national organization Right, you're, you're looking at your biggest metro markets mm-hmm.

Are typically where you'd set up a market geography. So we're that mid-sized grouping, I'd say pretty similar to like a Kansas City or St. Louis in size for metro.

Jeff Holden: You touched a little bit in the answer to the geography on just innovation and, and people that you might work with. When we're talking about local, because you are the local entity of the big

Yeah.

Organization. Who are some of the people that you would collaborate with? Who might we [00:16:00] see you engaged with? Without me just making assumptions, because I know you surprised me when we talked about this the last time. The, the assumptions are there.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. But,

Jeff Holden: but go ahead, share some of those. I

Alexis Padilla: mean, this comes to, we've talked about this to the dream state too, of what I, what I, you know, in a perfect world, right, how we would look to collaborate.

Question, not jumping above. Don't go that far. I'll, I'll go more in depth on that one later, but I think. Our natural partnerships are gonna be healthcare centers, right? Mm-hmm. Or health systems, especially those that have cancer centers. So we operate under that patient support pillar. We have, I think the easiest way to understand the role is like a consultant figure to cancer centers, being able to help with creative idea planning, grant administration.

Administration, right? So understanding when we have different open cycles for grants for these healthcare systems to apply for their researchers. You know, we're fortunate that we've. Opened back up the tap to uc, Davis funding. So that's a, you know, a very natural partnership there with the work we could do in the science space.

I also [00:17:00] think, you know, we're not short on nonprofits here, and so this is true. My current belief system is we don't need to stand up more programs here. We, I would love a network where we're integrated into programs that already exist. You know, when we talk about transportation. What are things we could do here locally to advance, you know, recruit more drivers, right.

For our Road to Recovery program partner with like a para of transit.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: I was just chatting with Greg Fishman and he was like, have you talked with the, you know, Tiffany Transportation? Tiffany? Yeah.

Jeff Holden: Yeah.

Alexis Padilla: Well, no, not Tiffany. Yes. I've talked to Tiffany, love her and the work her team. Mm-hmm. And her team is amazing.

And just how do we work with the city? How do we work? You know, there's just so many opportunities of how we could show up. For patients, I think, and I'm, I know we'll get to it, cultivate, which we, we just launched is a big part of that focuses on how do we collaborate, how do we act as a convener, bring people to the table to think, you know, perhaps it's not, you might live in the transportation land, but what does it look like if we brought [00:18:00] food from a food bank to patients or medically tailored meal companies, you know, working together mm-hmm.

With healthcare systems to identify patient need. Specifically for cancer patients or beyond? I think some of that exists from what I've learned here locally around hypertension and diabetes. The cool thing is, is that what you do to lower your chances to heart, heart, but also chronic disease in general, is the same way you would work to prevent cancer.

Mm-hmm. So 42% of cancers are considered preventable and attributed to lifestyle choices. And so what does it look like to partner with organizations that are already in this space? When I think of chronic disease, you know, I came from another big blockbuster organization before, and I, I was not putting, you know, we were doing really great work around hypertension.

I did not put cancer in that same bucket. And so one, how do we add cancer to the conversation? And then what does it look like to collaborate more strategically?

Jeff Holden: We'll be back with more from Alexis Padilla of the American Cancer Society in Sacramento, right after these [00:19:00] messages from those who make our program possible.

I'm speaking with Darrell Tet, CEO of Core. Welcome to our Family of Partners.

Darrell Teat: Thank you so much, Jeff. We are really excited to be part of the family and contribute to the work that you all are doing.

Jeff Holden: What is Core all about?

Darrell Teat: Core provides fractional and interim executive services along with comprehensive back office.

So. They go into our client sites and do the work to give them the capacity they need in order to move through transitions, whether that's planned or unplanned, or companies also work with our accounting and finance, back office solutions, human resources, technology, and administration.

Jeff Holden: Why are these services such a lifesaver for small and midsize organizations?

Darrell Teat: Great question, Jeff. The reason why our back office solutions add value is because we save them time and money anywhere from 20 to 30% of what they would spend on that back office solution. We work in it so they can actually work on it.

Jeff Holden: I have to believe that there's somebody right [00:20:00] now listening and thinking, I could use that kind of help.

What's the best way to get in touch with you, Darel?

Darrell Teat: The best way is at our website, cx OR e.com, and contact me directly at DTE a t@cxoe.com.

Jeff Holden: Darrell, thank you for your investment and commitment to supporting our messaging. And if you're interested in learning more about how CORE may help your organization, visit CXOR e.com.

Scott Thomas: Hello, this is Scott Thomas with CAPTRUST in our Sacramento office. I specialize in working with local nonprofits and associations annually. We survey private and public nonprofit organizations across the country to better understand challenges they see in today's environment. In our more recent survey, we heard concerns about proper board governance, mission aligned investment, and how to implement alternative investments.

If you would like a copy of the survey or do discuss your organization, look me up, [00:21:00] scottThomas@captrust.com.

Jeff Holden: At Western Health Advantage. Healthcare isn't just a service, it's a shared value. As a nonprofit leader, you need a health plan that understands the important of mission-driven work. Western Health Advantage is a local not-for-profit health plan that supports organizations like yours with affordable, flexible coverage options for your team.

What truly sets them apart is their commitment to community supporting nonprofits like the American Heart Association, Sacramento Ballet, and the Crocker Art Museums Pay what you wish Sundays with access to top tier providers and dedicated local support. Western Health advantages more than a health plan.

It's a partner in your purpose. Explore your options today@westernhealth.com. Western Health Advantage, healthcare with Heart, designed for those who give back. As a legacy organization, what you do [00:22:00] has these, these huge tentacles across the country.

Mm-hmm.

And, and global in some way, shape or form. I'm sure when we look at it on the local basis.

Just local. For your 23 counties, how are you funded? How do you, I'm sure. American Cancer Society to say, okay, here, we'll give all this money to Sacramento. I'm sure it's locally originated. You have to prove the value of the community to continue to sustain. What is it you do?

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. So we are, we're not a franchise model in that.

I know some big ones are from a funding perspective, from, I'll go with the word national. We also use enterprise. So if you hear me use the two Sure. Interchangeable, um, interchangeable. Yep. You look at like, for example. The last research grant that uc Davis just got funded, that funding CHA funding channel is gonna come through our science and discovery pillar directly from national's bucket of money that they've allocated for the year on X, Y, [00:23:00] Z research topics, right?

So essentially it works two ways in the sense of a researcher from uc, Davis applying. For the grant funding and then a CS saying yes. Mm-hmm. We also, in that same lane, will fund healthcare systems too, in the work they're doing. So a really great example of that is Dignity Health here locally. Mm-hmm.

There. Cancer Center worked with our patient support team and they received a grant from us last year, specifically focused on enhancing lung screening rates locally. They created this really cool program. I won't go into all the details, and essentially a regular increase in lung screening would've been about nine to 12%.

They saw 45.4% increase. Wow. In lung screening. They used a whole variety of channels to achieve that and they worked in tandem with us. Right? And so the beauty of that is it was fund from National, so that wasn't local funding necessarily. I'll tell you how that feeds up in a [00:24:00] second. But that's a good, like national money.

Down to the local level. And then now that pilot project through a CS channels is now have has been taught in, I think like five different states in the way our organization is shaped. Essentially everything we raise here locally, unless specifically designated to one thing in particular, does roll up to that big pot.

And then as a. We as an organization would decide, you know, which areas of investment into the different pillars of our work. Right. I see. So an example of that is, for example, how. A researcher at uc Davis applied for funding through his grant for his big idea. A CS said excellent idea. Here is, you know, 11, 12 months worth of funding for this re actually, I think he has two years, uh, research funding project.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: Another example of that would be through our patient support team that operates as consulting to these cancer centers. They [00:25:00] worked with Dignity Health here locally. To address a problem in lung cancer screening rates, and then through a grant from a CS, so money raised locally right into the big pot that overflows back into our community.

They did a year long project to increase screening rates, which normally annually are about a nine to 12% increase, and they saw a 45. 0.4% increase in lung cancer screening rates, which is phenomenal.

Jeff Holden: It's, it's truly phenomenal. Truly

Alexis Padilla: phenomenal. I mean, better than, I mean, top best in class.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: And then that has now been used as a methodology to implement in different cancer centers, centers across the country.

I heard our local team taught the team in Flo, a team in Florida, so you couldn't get further away in geography where our local teams are shining through the investment that's raised here locally. And then up. And then back down.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. And so you would see influence on research projects that isn't typically your budget.

It's [00:26:00] they're, they're, they are Sacramento, but it's gonna be dynamic mm-hmm. Over the course of years as things come and go, uc, Davis has a project, or Dignity has a project, or whomever

Yeah.

Sets that up. So those aren't really your operating. What is your, how do you raise funds for you for Sacramento's operating?

Alexis Padilla: That is through, so we have two campaigns here locally. Each has a annual event, and so we have our Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, which is the next one on the calendar

Jeff Holden: that takes place every October

Alexis Padilla: 12th. Every year.

Jeff Holden: Every year in October? Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: Every year in October. Okay. National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Perfect. It's at Sac State for the third year now. It's been there. It wasn't Capital. Another

Jeff Holden: collaborator then with Sac State supporting. Absolutely. I know

Alexis Padilla: I have like, uh, high in the sky goals of can I get Shaq to like sh shoot some hoops or something on the Carnival Festival area. But yeah, we've been there for three years.

But the event itself is 27 years young.

Jeff Holden: Yes.

Alexis Padilla: And so we Right. That's at like your, you know, your typical walk model where you would come, you can, it's [00:27:00] free to attend. If you don't have to fundraise, although highly encouraged, right? That's a really unique campaign because a hundred percent of what you raise goes directly to breast cancer research.

And so that's about, let's see, last year we raised about. A good two thirds of what we brought in. I didn't believe it when I first started, but you know, it was told to me there was 20,000 people that attend and I thought, how have I lived here for so long and I've never heard of this event. And sure enough that many people showed up outta the woodwork.

And so I think it's the coolest. I mean, we put almost nothing into the marketing of that event when I first started, and I think. This many people showed up because they're, it's the, the coolest grassroots movement. I think I've been able to witness time, so we'll tell

Jeff Holden: people right now, mark your calendars.

Just keep an eye out for October, October 12th and pay attention. Well, it's this year. That's this

Alexis Padilla: year. Yeah.

Jeff Holden: You know, the podcast goes a little bit longer than pick it up. Yeah. Yeah. We don't want to date that. This is 2025, but every October is when that event takes place. There's [00:28:00] 20,000 plus people.

Mm-hmm. Yeah. Which,

it's, it's always a good month if, if you get in early.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. We have people that come from Humboldt County.

Jeff Holden: Wow.

Alexis Padilla: Which is amazing.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: And then the opposite end of the year, we just launched our cultivate campaign. So that'll be in the spring, likely May 2nd of this next year, but April, may timeframe.

Jeff Holden: Okay. And we'll touch on that in in just a second time to dream big. What if somebody said, Alexis for Sacramento? 'cause we know you are rebuilding this market.

Yeah.

Here's a blank check if. We like your idea. What is it you would do? What would it look like? And I know you've got a lot of innovative concepts that you wanna see happen here.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. I mean, I would double the size of our team starters. Many hands make light work. Yeah. Gosh. I mean, when I think of numbers like one in two men and one in three women will experience a cancer diagnosis in their lifetime. [00:29:00] That's a lot of people to show up for. So

Jeff Holden: that's half of us half. Of the men will have cancer at some point in their lifetime.

Mm-hmm. And a third of the women.

Alexis Padilla: Correct.

Jeff Holden: The, the, the thought. And that always amazes me. 'cause we as guys, and I think most would agree, we think of women with cancer, breast cancer. Yeah. That's the novel. That's the one that we all know about. Wow. It's so prolific. I'm sure ours is probably prostate in some way, shape or form as the preeminent.

Nobody talks about it.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah.

Jeff Holden: You know, we just don't talk about it the same way yet. Here's, 50% of us are gonna have some semblance of cancer in some way, shape, or form in our lifetime. More than women.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. Actually one in eight men will experience a prostate cancer diagnosis, and it's the same for women with breast cancer,

Jeff Holden: one in

Alexis Padilla: eight, which I thought that was interesting to your point.

Jeff Holden: It is. Yeah.

Alexis Padilla: I think,

Jeff Holden: and I, and I did take you off of your dream big, so I apologize for that. Oh, that's

Alexis Padilla: okay. I think there's just so many ways. If someone were to hand me a [00:30:00] blank check, I would immediately, you know, the day to day. There's so many things that pull you in so many different directions. I think you could eliminate so much of the noise and focus purely on what is the most capable network we could build with what we have here to reach the most amount of people.

Like you look at that statistic. Well, we got a lot of people. Mm-hmm. To support. I would think of energy put towards what would it take to get every company on our Gsec board. To have a robust cancer support program in their hr. Not to say that they don't, but you know, all the big players here. What would it look like to support their employee bases around cancer?

I think of it's a hashtag Barry

Jeff Holden: Broom and a hashtag Mark Friedman, who's the new chair of the board for Gsec now, too. Yes. Yeah,

Alexis Padilla: yeah. I think of, you know, how do we, oh man. I would put a food pantry in every cancer center that would take one here. You know, the Cultivate campaign, which I know we're gonna get to some of the early research coming out of it, and just the last [00:31:00] 11 months, is that almost 30% of cancer patients enter food insecurity during their cancer journey.

So that's not coming to the table already. Food insecure, that's a whole nother ballgame, but actually entering. A state of food insecurity through a cancer diagnosis. That is a lot we could do to support these families as they're going through it. And then it's systems of support for take it beyond one step beyond the patient.

Right? You've got, we estimate nine caretakers per cancer patient. That's a big network. Not everybody has that. Some people even have more, but what does it look like to support, you mentioned mental health, financial stability, you know, I think. The opportunities are endless. Mm-hmm. In what we could do. It's not a one thing, if I've learned anything in the last year and a half, it's that can boys cancer messy?

Mm-hmm. And it's really layered. The silver lining in that is, boy, are there a lot of ways we could show up to support people that we love.

Jeff Holden: You mentioned Cultivate. This is a great place [00:32:00] to talk about it. Mm-hmm. Because you say it. Who knows what that means. What is she talking about? Cultivate? I don't see it on the website.

There's nothing about Cultivate, but yeah, it's really significant and I, I want you to talk a little bit about it because it's really what we eat and how significant that is to the potential for a cancer diagnosis and, or you name it, diagnosis. Yeah,

Alexis Padilla: well, I'd love to share a little of where it came from Please too, because it's sack born and raised.

So when I first joined, we did kind of a, just an overall analysis as a team of where we were at as a market. And, um, we had some really great events and in their heyday we're doing fantastic things. You know, 10, 15 years ago. In the current state post COVID, not financially savvy for us to keep, and so [00:33:00] probably most known to a few people is me canceling a golf tournament.

That was fantastic and was around for 20 years. Actually in its 20th year anniversary. We sunsetted the event, but the intention being could we create something that. One was profitable to feed the work we're doing, right? Mm-hmm. So the net benefit was better for our business so we could fund the partnerships we hope to have and create, and the impact to have.

And, and then when we kind of started from a clean slate, what do we wanna build? That is something our own community is gonna get excited by. A CS has been around forever. We have, if anything, we are known for throwing really great parties, so I could have had any template under the sun to pull from across the nation.

But we instead as a team, came up with Cultivate and the idea being we're already so passionate about our farm to fork roots. Our ag community, the role we play in culinary innovation, our [00:34:00] Michelin restaurants, the awards that our chefs have and own, you know, all the things that we're proud to, to boast about as a region.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: And so, okay, how do we feed into that excitement with something we could create? And it's still, it's still being created and morphed and it's a flexible campaign that we're working on, but then we went to, okay, what is a CS doing in nutrition? Turns out a lot in different sectors of the org. So we are, I would say, in almost every spot of nutrition from prevention of cancer.

All the way through to, you know, looks very different for a cancer patient going through treatment. And now with more and more people surviving cancer than ever before in history, understanding what does nutrition need, what are the nutrition needs for people in survivorship, right? So post-treatment as well.

And so we decided to build cultivate. It's intentionally not a food word, because we believe, you know, you look at pockets of our communities that are already food insecure. I was talking to Karen at Yolo Food [00:35:00] Bank, right? So you've got what I think the stats one in three households, right? County, one in three, in Yolo County, in county.

They're also the least likely to get screened for cancer when they should. And then as a direct result of that, have the highest death rates from cancer. Mm-hmm. In their county. Right? So what does it look like? Food might be the access point in how we show up for people. It's a great community connector.

How do we also step in then as a cancer society to one, support cancer patients, but also be in the dialogue of prevention, right? And showing up for the need for healthy food. For X, Y, Z science reason, we all know we should be eating healthy. And so kind of from that idea, cultivate was born, we had our first annual event.

So you call it a gala, it's not a sit down dinner at all. That was the one rule. No chicken sit down dinners.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: And so we actually had, chef Santana joined us, chef Chris from Locales, chef Kelly from the kitchen. They were our three inaugural chef chairs. This last April, and then they brought their friends the best of the best, and we had 10 chefs and restaurants that showed up and [00:36:00] we did a tasting style event and talked about.

Everything we've been chatting about. Right. So the three pillars of a CS and then the plus. So I think of cultivate as an and so plus the lens of nutrition. Mm-hmm. So like every food any chef was making had a cancer fighting ingredient. We had Sac State's nutrition team on, on site as students talking about why this garlic or asparagus is cancer fighting and just being an informative opportunity to teach people about what you eat can prevent disease.

Each person left with recipe cards from our chefs. Now, if you chose to take them on, that's up to you. I looked at some of them and thought, Ooh, that's about my skillset. But you know, there was some that were a little more for common. I think she was the same. Maybe I just Yeah, exactly. Poke it differently.

Yeah. Yeah. And then we're also running research. So part of what I shared earlier about the food insecurity, so. Cultivate funds raised through Cultivate. Also locally, we're working with Adventist Health, uc, Davis, and I'm the ride out team around understanding at what [00:37:00] point food insecurity intersects.

Mm-hmm. So I'll say, you know, we learn just from a listening tour that every cancer center here will screen for food insecurity at. Diagnosis but not post-treatment. So there's this learning we have here of when we think of how do we navigate and show up for patient-centric care? You know, should we be also talking to them at the tail end of their treatment?

Right? What does then survivorship look like when you're now food insecure? So it provides a lot of opportunity for us to even just learn how we're responding and showing up here locally and then forward thinking. Another really fun part of it is Chef Santana. We have this opportunity, we're currently creating it with teaching kitchens, so we have.

Best of the best chefs here to add the, the fun and creativity and the food. And then we wanna pull, like food you'd get from a food bank and the opportunity to teach the community what's seasonal, what they can use, what's free and healthy creative. Mm-hmm. And then what's really fun is the new [00:38:00] uc, Davis Folsome Center.

Working with them will allow us the opportunity to broadcast these teaching kitchens to our Hope 31 Hope Lodges across the country, which will be direct patient support access. Our Hope lodges are free lodging for cancer patients across the country and their caretakers for the duration of their treatment.

And so it's a constant revolving door. And so what we'll do then is create a resource library through the teaching kitchens for patients at any point to utilize and get some fun, creative, nutritional support.

Jeff Holden: And we all know Food Inn is the first preventative measure, but there are also foods that can reduce the effects, consequences of cancer as well.

So all these things around Cultivate

Yeah,

have so much impact too. Somebody who may already be diagnosed with cancer, but certainly for the prevention. I mean, we wanna get in front of this. That's the, the number one way to [00:39:00] minimize the disease is just to not get it in the first place.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. Oh, I also forgot, another cool thing we did with Cultivate, and it launched about a month and a half ago, is our nutrition toolkit.

So we started asking every patient and survivor we met, you know, what did your. Team emphasized nutrition at all. What nutrition resources were you given? Tell me about, you know, your journey there. Learned that very few patients had an emphasis on nutrition regardless of system. And it was also one of those, if my doctor wasn't telling me to focus on it, I wasn't focusing on it.

Right. Because you're hanging off of every word they say with a cancer diagnosis. And so. How do we show up then in the space of saying nutrition's very important. And so we, we created our, our national team actually helped us create like kind of a consolidated, not overwhelming three page overview of kind of our core nutrition resources that we already have as an organization and then our local team created, it's about five [00:40:00] pages of local.

Resources around food. So where you can get, and that's where a lot of the collaboration has started coming from locally. Right? So you think of like Center of Land-Based Learning has mobile from Farmer's Market, right? Yes. So we have those routes on our list. We have Paratransits people I think is people to produce and home to healthcare, right?

Mm-hmm. So addressing food and transportation. And so how do we lift others up in this journey when it's a resource we're never gonna provide as an organization, but they do. And so kind of that all boats rise mentalities. Mm-hmm. And so, and then on top of that we have two pages of local cancer organizations too.

And how

Jeff Holden: does somebody get that information?

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. So we have that, it's in multiple places. It's now fully integrated into, if you called that 800 number and you told them where you live, that would be a resource that would be given to you. It encompasses all our territory. So I'll, and

Jeff Holden: we will have that 800 number in the show notes too.

Yep. So, so we can do that. And

Alexis Padilla: 1 802 2 7 2 3 4 5.

Jeff Holden: Easy.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. [00:41:00] And we also have, so probably the highest concentration of usage is then each of our healthcare systems here, since we already partner with their cancer centers, are utilizing the resource and holy moly, are they excited about it? Mm-hmm. So what's really, I think we've had over 200 downloads of it since we launched a month and a half ago.

Wonderful.

Jeff Holden: So,

Alexis Padilla: yeah, that's mostly that they're that intersection. Right? Your, your patient navigators, your social workers, you know, their dieticians. Mm-hmm. If you're meeting with them. Those are the ones where we wanna equip with information.

Jeff Holden: And so you can just start to begin as the listener going, oh, they probably are talking too.

What about the other food banks Answer? Yes. Yeah. What about the restaurants? Oh, yep. We're talking to the restaurants for a variety of different reasons. Mm-hmm. And I'm sure you're gonna be at some point talking to growers if you're not already

Alexis Padilla: starting to Yes. Yeah. Actually was on with almond board this morning.

There we go. Yeah.

Jeff Holden: That all makes perfectly good sense.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah.

Jeff Holden: So we come back to reality today. You know, cultivate is. It's active, it's happening is a big picture piece because I can see how [00:42:00] it can really envelop the community and then grow throughout the country, hopefully.

Yeah, yeah. Once

the, the vision has been executed here with a, you know, a beta or a proof of concept, then, then you're out.

What's the, the, the greatest need today? What do you see as the greatest need with the organization?

Alexis Padilla: Organization or locally

Jeff Holden: here? Yes.

Alexis Padilla: Okay. Um, yeah. American

Jeff Holden: Cancer Society, Sacramento.

Alexis Padilla: Mm-hmm. Yeah. So I would say it's true, like there are endless days that I, we feel like we're the new kids in town, right? So you've got an entire staff team without the tenure of relationships that this org's had here locally.

So it would be just. Connections in the community and people willing to get creative with us. And you know, I've been so fortunate to work for these large organizations, but also be able to see that we can still individually touch individual lives. Mm-hmm. I've. Spin on teams that have created robust strategic [00:43:00] partnerships with corporations and been able to see how those trickle down into lifestyle change and culture in your organization and things like that.

So to me, it's people who are ready to roll up your sleeves and try something new and you know, see if we can prevent more cancer, but also show up for those that have it here. 'cause it doesn't discriminate.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. I actually like the way you answered that. You didn't answer it. Yeah. It's more money. No, it's more about relationships, it's more about partnerships to where we can work with your organization to mm-hmm.

Encompass all the assets. Maybe not just a dollar. It's not about just a dollar. Right. It's using all the tools available to us.

Alexis Padilla: Mm-hmm. I mean, funding is obviously a part of it for sure. Correct. But yes, the relationships are key and that's something that we're still working to try to get our way in there.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm. As a donor, most people look at the way the organizations are run, you know, who is the spokesperson per se. And I don't mean that as a talent, I mean it as the executive [00:44:00] director or CEO, whatever that title happens to be, to get a feel for the commitment to the organization. What is it that brought you here?

Why would a donor say, Alexis? Yeah, I'm, I'm in,

Alexis Padilla: I would say, you know, when I first started, someone said. Every single person is touched by cancer. I thought that was really dramatic, um, statement, but it's true. Mm-hmm. It's so one, I think in every conversation we have, you're already emotionally tied to wanting to kick cancer's butt.

Um, why our team now? Um, I would say we're ready. Ready and prime to, to just try something new in this market. And that's not to say that the past didn't work. I think the past worked for that time. What does it look like now to partner with a CS? And I think of, you know, what excites me is the, I think events are great.

I don't know anybody in nonprofit that's not gonna say yes to someone being willing to hand them $5,000 for an event [00:45:00] sponsorship. And if that's what gets you really excited, then that's great. We've checked that box. But I think what gets me really excited is when we can think much more strategically. I almost think you throw the nonprofit piece out the window and what does it look like to accelerate this business forward?

Mm-hmm. Which as a product is supporting people with cancer or working to eliminate it. So I think, you know. Why us now? I think we have the opportunity in this reset mode to think really creatively and to try new things. We have a brand new board of directors. They're all excited to get move in. We hope to double in size in the next year.

And so, yeah, I think the energy is fresh and it's a great time to to dive in.

Jeff Holden: And I love the answer because it's not the same old, same old.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah.

Jeff Holden: You know. Nothing's wrong with golf tournaments. No, those are just fine. But

Alexis Padilla: I heard we had puppies at some holes, which I mean, that would've

Jeff Holden: really won me

Alexis Padilla: over, but yeah, I know.

Jeff Holden: And it's, it is, it's time for those novel concepts. I [00:46:00] mean, Sacramento is, is gonna have this huge food event coming, you know? Mm-hmm. Remand. I

know.

No, that's really unique. That's different. Mm-hmm. That's not a food fest of some sort, you know? Or a best of food. Yeah. In Sacramento. And I think we do need to.

Look at things differently. Certainly because things are being funded differently today. Today meaning, mm-hmm. Yesterday. Literally. Just yesterday. Yeah. It was one way and today it's different.

Yeah.

And everybody has to accept that and think of new ways to do what they need to do to not only survive, but of course thrive if they want to grow their organizations.

How about a success story or two? You have anything you could say? We've, we've seen this come through. Here's some of the things that we've done. It could be with a relationship with one of our healthcare partners or an individual

Alexis Padilla: success story. Well, I mean our, our board Can I give you more than one?

Jeff Holden: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Alexis Padilla: All two different examples. So, I mean, our, our board, we've got seven [00:47:00] individuals on it, and all of them are new to a CS. And I think six of the seven was cold outreach from our team on LinkedIn. If you had talked to me, you know, a couple years ago around cold outreach, I would've been like, Ugh. You know, I'm like 15 years plus into nonprofit life and cold outreach.

Sounds like. A thorn in your side. But the reality is, is, is just to have those conversations with individuals and it was just like, can we grab coffee? Can I share with you what we, the vision for what this market can do? And then their excitement, you know, just meeting us and choosing to come on the board and trusting the vision and helping us shape it.

Mm-hmm. Because, gosh, I'm not one person at the helm here. Like this is a creative group and I, I love their strategic thinking and how we move forward. Those are all small wins, right. Of new intersection. We have even a board member too, who was actually chair of the board and been on it for 10 years.

Right. So adding in that historical context too, of [00:48:00] knowing what we've tried, what we've done, how do we reshape, move forward. Another success story, I would say, and I I, I can't say the name of the healthcare system yet, but

Jeff Holden: if I ask

Alexis Padilla: mm-hmm. How many

Jeff Holden: of those cold outreach LinkedIns did you touch before you got enough to assemble a board?

Do you know? Oh my gosh, what the percentage was. Oh my gosh.

Alexis Padilla: I bet half your listeners are like, yeah, she slid into my dms too. But I mean, cold outreach, we're still in the hustle of cold outreach. Okay. So, you know, we, oh my gosh. I mean, it's probably for every, I mean, I feel like there's also a science to what you say in your message, but probably for every 20 I ping I get one response.

Jeff Holden: Okay.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah.

Jeff Holden: What a novel way to do it though.

Alexis Padilla: When you don't know anybody here. Yes, right. We're all new. Even though I lived here, my work life was the west region and Bay area wasn't here. So truly zero connections on the team when we first started. So,

Jeff Holden: um, but you're not recycling a lot of the same people who, and, and I don't [00:49:00] mean that as a, as a negative, but you get to choose.

You can, I'm, I'm cautious on how I say this because I think so many boards. Are mature and they've been mature and they continue to be mature and we need some new thoughts and we need some new ideas and we need some really creative input for our organizations to do what they need to do today, not the stuff that we all have been familiar with.

Yeah, and that's hard when you have a mature board or those same people, they. Come off of one board, you know, they cycle out and they go to another and, and we love them. It's wonderful. We need the support, but we also need that rejuvenation.

Yeah.

Of, of board activity and board memberships. So cold out into LinkedIn.

I, I've not heard anybody do that.

Alexis Padilla: Oh, well

Jeff Holden: there we go. There we go. So there's a novel concept [00:50:00]

Alexis Padilla: to tell the team that. Yeah. Right. Yeah. And we've talked

Jeff Holden: to a lot of people.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah.

Jeff Holden: Never heard anybody reaching out that way.

Alexis Padilla: Like I mentioned, I've been doing this a long time and some of the coolest people I've met have been the last year and a half.

Mm-hmm. Been here in Sacramento very. My husband gives me a really hard time because I was, I didn't love living in the area, partly because I wasn't integrating myself in the community. Mm-hmm. When I lived here the first six years and he gave me grief the first time, I think I was three months into the job I had just met with.

Someone at SA Republic and we went to a game and bought a hat. My husband's like, who are you? It's like, you're wearing Sacramento. Like yeah, this is so we should be proud. He is like, oh my gosh, this is like a complete 180. Yeah. Yeah. But yeah, so I really have fallen in love with the people here and the work we're, we're trying to lead and yeah.

Jeff Holden: And that was, that was one story you were gonna say? Another, oh yeah.

Alexis Padilla: The second story I would say, and I, again, I can't, I won't mention the healthcare system yet. I'll be blasting it from the rooftop once it's finalized. But you know, we we're. Talking to this team and they've [00:51:00] historically been a, you know, 5K sponsor of making strides.

And the conversation came from a board member who just introduced me to a friend and it's, you know, the first ask isn't, will you do 10,000 instead of five? It's kind of to your point, if, if you know, what could we create? If there's a blank check or if there was like, what are your strategic goals mm-hmm.

That you have as an organization and we learn it's, you know, addressing social determinants of health and, you know, health equity work. Great. Us too. You know, so what does it look like to go from this big picture vision down to what we could do locally? Mm-hmm. And from that is now shaping into a statewide partnership being led by our.

Sacramento leadership too. Um, bringing in more and more people from their organization. And we're talking about now launching likely in 2026. We have this incredible, I love you, get screened campaign that, you know, educates and informs communities [00:52:00] about the importance of getting screened. Right. So you have in some cancers almost a 90% better success rate if your cancer's caught early enough.

Early, yes. Right? So, you know. We can target to populations like Yolo County and, and then push them towards access points for screening free, reduced, covered. And then from there, you know, track data and help these systems with their own things they're tracking, which is screening numbers. Mm-hmm. And prevention.

And so what does it look like to work collectively together? And it's now turned into. Statewide campaign with a big focus on Northern California, which I'm so excited to more to come when that's official, but

Jeff Holden: can't wait to hear. I

Alexis Padilla: know. Yeah. But I mean, that's a great, you know, a lot of people, I got feedback when I first started from a healthcare system that said, to be honest, we don't really need you.

And that was really an eyeopening statement for me. I was a month in on the job, so you can imagine. I was like, what's my [00:53:00] response here? Mm-hmm. I didn't need to know a lot about cancer. Try, honestly, because I thought, one, what a statement, and two, realistically, a CS doesn't need you either. Right? But can't we do exponentially more together?

You know, if we were, if we both have the same goals. I don't understand why you wouldn't collaborate on something to enhance both entities, and so I think that is a mindset I try to keep when I'm talking to even a smaller cancer organization. One could look at this as we're all going after the same dollar, but I think if you look at that in that mindset, you're completely limiting your impact potential.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: Sure. We are, yes, all vying for the same dollars. Again, at the core of what we're in this line of work, because we believe in bettering our communities and whatever the org is that you represent, right? So leaving it better than we perhaps found it. And so, you know, like I [00:54:00] think of like a, I'll be aware, Keaton's Cancer or Triumph is a great one.

Me one foundation. All things we will never provide as an organization. But I hope that if my family's dealing with a cancer diagnosis and I apply for me one, 'cause I heard about it through a CS, or I get the opportunity to do a 12 week free exercise program specifically tailored to my needs.

Jeff Holden: Mm-hmm.

Alexis Padilla: I just think that's such, well, more well-rounded.

Approach to bettering our communities.

Jeff Holden: I was hoping you were gonna say me one, because you heard it through the nonprofit podcast day. I actually

Alexis Padilla: did, and then I was at um, uc, Davis' Cancer Survivor Day, and we were at the booth next to them and I went over and talked to the Are they incredible? Oh, incredible.

Jeff Holden: Yeah. Yeah. I know. They just filled up their camp.

Alexis Padilla: I know. Yeah, that's coming

Jeff Holden: up. And they filled up their volunteers and everything, so they're good

Alexis Padilla: to go. I know I missed the volunteer deadline, but I would love to do that one day with one of my kiddos. Yeah.

Jeff Holden: Yeah. It is very, very neat. I love the way that you're looking at it.

I love the way that you're approaching the organization [00:55:00] with a new set of eyes from a different perspective, trying things that are different because we're all there today. Everybody has got to do things differently than they've done them historically, or they aren't going to look the same

right as

they've looked historically if they make it because everything's changing and it's changing so fast.

And I think the benefit you've got is you don't have that legacy of, this is the way we've always done it. Because it's cycled in and out and up and down. Mm-hmm. And it doesn't look the same as it did before. So you're starting fresh and looking at relationships differently. And food, I think we all would rather see anything prevented as opposed to treated.

Right.

You know, symptoms are bare, you know?

Mm-hmm. You

know, cause is the. You know, the thing we'd like to eliminate. So you're, you're marching down that path and I think that's what's really, really beautiful about the way that you're approaching it. I mean, a couple years from now, we're gonna talk about this and see what that looks like and what this cultivate did and did it work?

Right?

[00:56:00] Yeah.

Well, I, I can usually come up with some really nicely worded closes, but the significance of what you do with the organization, the depth of service, the commitment to the patient, the research for the medical community, which I probably would guess is the most money, goes into the research.

Yeah. Just, just the sheer scope of this disease and how many people it impacts and touches. We need to know more. We just need to know more, and it needs to exist because if I'm not mistaken, you're funded, your funding is predominantly self originated. It's not big tons of government money coming at your way.

You know, you get a little bit here and there, but we are supporting that and organizations are supporting it and, and, and businesses are supporting it. So. Thank you for what you do. Thank you for making the decision to transition over to American Cancer Society with all these new ideas, and I think a lot of people are gonna be hearing this and going,

Hmm,

I know I need to rethink it.

It's so hard to make that change. But I need to [00:57:00] maybe talk to Alexis. You know, maybe there's something there for us too in looking at this thing a little bit differently. So I appreciate you. Thanks for coming in. I know you have been. Thanks for having me. An advocate of ours, and I love that too. Oh my gosh.

Alexis Padilla: I've learned so much from, I mean, that's how we actually got connected to a lot of our Cultivate partners was. Jordan on my team who leads Cultivate and I listening to the different, if there anything came up about food, we were like, oh, which is this? And so then we'd reach out to them. So thank you for the resource you're providing.

Jeff Holden: Absolutely. Our pleasure. I hope to hear more and more and more.

Alexis Padilla: Yes. We'll come back with updates.

Jeff Holden: And Alexis, do you wanna give that 800 number again? We will put this in the show notes, but just for the benefit of Go ahead.

Alexis Padilla: Yeah. 1 802 2 7 2 3 4 5. Okay. And then our website is cancer.org. Perfect. And then our Advocacy Arms website is fight cancer.org.

Jeff Holden: Okay.

Alexis Padilla: Even shoot me an email, alexis dot padia@cancer.org.

Jeff Holden: Thank you so much.

Alexis Padilla: Thank you.

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