Looking Back on Some of The Rose’s Most Fascinating Stories

Dorothy: [00:00:00] Hi, I’m Dorothy Gibbons, CEO and co founder of The Rose. She was the number one storyteller for The Rose and brought more understanding to our work and our mission than ever before. Her role in marketing and communications met awareness of what we did, grew by leaps and bounds, and for some, it meant their life.

Today, master storyteller Karen Campbell tells us why she believes in the power of story and what made her apply for the Peace Corps at age 53.

Let’s Talk About Your Breast, a different kind of podcast presented to you by The Rose Breast Center of Excellence and a Texas treasure. You’re going to hear frank discussions about tough topics, and you’re going to learn why knowing about your breast could save your life. Join us as we hear another story. And we answer those tough questions that you may have.[00:01:00]

Karen, you were the first PR person that Rose ever had. And I, I tell you what, that was a really fabulous, huge learning time, and much needed that we had someone here who was going to handle that. So what do you remember about that time?

Karen: Well, the first thing I remember is that in my mind, I was not the first because you had the PR background.

And so that’s what I remember more than anything. It was like I was stepping into a position where the, my client she probably knew more about the subject, well, she knew more about the subject matter and she knew more about our business probably than I did. Uh, so it was a little bit intimidating when I, when I first got here.

Um, but I was very excited. I had come out of the world of politics and decided that I was not in politics. I was supporting, uh, uh, I was a district director here and I was, um, curious if I could make it work in the nonprofit world and [00:02:00] when I got here you were about to celebrate the 25th anniversary of The Rose and My background was such that I had done several big events and I was just sitting there listening to some things at a meeting I think in the very room we made that we’re in right now, and I thought, I think I have a place here because I realized I could bring something, literally bring something to the table because at the beginning I wasn’t sure if I could.

So I remember that 25th anniversary so very well because it was, it was a celebration of all that you had done. So I got all your stories or a lot of your stories. It was like a crash course and you got to know your client when you’re, you know, doing PR and it was a crash course and I fell in love with The Rose.

Dorothy: Wow, I never put all that together. That’s interesting. And if you remember that night, uh, Cambrell still talks about that night. He was our emcee [00:03:00] and he missed a page or something and he said you, I jumped out from behind the podium and said, uh, we’re off page here.

It turns out we were one of the first he’d ever done.

Karen: Oh, wow.

Dorothy: Yeah. And it was when we were with, uh, when the cancer fighters had done something with us. And I went, Oh, I. I totally missed that.

Karen: Yeah, he was a great emcee.

Dorothy: He still is, I tell you. He’s still in there fighting for breast cancer and fighting, doing the advocacy bit. Which is something you have a lot of history with, a lot of knowledge.

And when you say you jumped from politics into nonprofit. Truly. I don’t think you’ve ever left that political world. You’ve always been an advocate. Yeah. So tell us why. Why do you think it’s so important that we even do that?

Karen: I came from a very small town. And I never really believed the [00:04:00] life I have led was possible.

I, if you had asked me back then, you know, envision your life in 25 years, I would have been nowhere near what happened to me. And, and so when I, I think about, um, being from that small town, we, if we wanted something to happen though, we just went to City Hall or we talked to our pastor or whatever and we organized and we made it happen.

And I realized that while I had been enamored with the big city all of my life, um, the big city is just a bunch of communities and communities that grab my heart. And so when I got to Houston, my church community decided they wanted to make a difference in some way, and we started working in an AIDS hospice.

And this was only a few years after AIDS was really something in the forefront. And it’s still there, and they’re still doing that ministry. And [00:05:00] I became an advocate for, I felt like, for those who are not always heard. And when I found The Rose, and you worked with The women who were uninsured, another voiceless, oftentimes population.

Um, I thought, you know, I, I don’t have money, uh, and I’m not, you know, the most physically active person that ever walked the earth, but I have my time and, um, I don’t have to climb a ladder to success. I just have to be a voice for people who. You know, maybe not are not always heard and I know how to tell a story.

So that’s what I’ll do I’ll tell their stories and that’s the legacy I’ll leave

Dorothy: We’re talking to Karen Campbell who was the first PR person that The Rose ever had and I don’t know if you realize this Karen, but we still go back to your stories of the interviews you had with patients and we’ve we’ve found some that have continued to be with us and have been uh, just [00:06:00] great stories about how long people can live and how they can survive if they have a little help during the time when things are not so good.

Karen: Right.

Dorothy: So you, you really helped us. And, and I’m not just telling you this, but you helped us to see that we had a place to speak for the women that could not speak and before then I don’t think we were at all active with the legislature or didn’t even know what we were doing there and and you went with us and we did we did a lot some of the the most important things that The Rose was ever involved with was during that time.

Karen: Yeah, I always hesitate when I say I was in politics because I really wasn’t in politics. I was in governance. I was trying to get the laws we really needed on the books. But after a couple of years I decided that was a young woman’s job and I was no longer young enough to to keep [00:07:00] up with that world.

But yeah, it’s, it’s about advocating for, for things I, I base my life on, uh, you know, we’ve got to do justice and we got to seek mercy and, and walk humbly with God. And that’s what I do is like, just get out there and And try to, try to say, “Hey, this isn’t right. Can we do something about it?” And, you know, sometimes that makes me friends and sometimes I shake their hand and move on.

Dorothy: So you have had a number of different kind of jobs. And you talk about being in governance, in politics. You’re a writer at heart. Yeah. Yeah. So are you truly a reporter now or haven’t you

Karen: had a I have been I have been I got tickled one time. I said I’m the person you don’t want in a cocktail party because I was in religion, politics, nonprofits.

So I’m either, you know, I’m gonna do the topics you don’t talk about or ask you for money. Uh.

Dorothy: Well, and you do that very well. [00:08:00]

Karen: So, uh, And then I, I topped it off. My last job was, uh, I went from being a reporter at a small town newspaper, uh, to working for the local school district and I really, and that’s a great example of storytelling and advocacy is that, um, in a small town, you know, the news is going to be, you know, whoever got arrested and, um, maybe a local government, you know, meeting or something like that.

And, uh, I just love a good story. And so the school system was amazing and they were doing great things, but people were not aware of it. And so I just started telling the stories and it was it was super to go somewhere and people start talking about how much Weakley County Schools was doing now and how you know how active they were and what a great school system It had just become and I was like, no it has always been that Uh, in the time that this [00:09:00] superintendent has been here.

It has always been that just nobody was telling the stories And it was so much fun to give people The gift of pride and and where they were and where they were working It was simply by listening to them and sharing what they were doing.

Dorothy: I know anytime that i’m talking to a patient or to an employee find something else about them something else that I didn’t know It it is like you’re opening a whole new world and Most people don’t realize they had that story to tell.

It amazes me. I’m always sitting there with my mouth open going, How did you do this?

Karen: Yeah, exactly. And I love it because, like, I will go on a trip and something will be, something maybe not so great will happen, and I’ll go, “Well, it’s all about the story.” And I’ve directed a few weddings in my time, and I said, you never, I always tell the bride, you don’t want a perfect wedding.

Nobody remembers a perfect wedding. They remember when the flower girl dumped the flowers on the ring bearer’s head. That’s what they remember. I said, so don’t worry if it’s not [00:10:00] perfect. It’ll be a great story.

Dorothy: Oh, and you always knew how to, to source those out. Those great, great stories. Now, a while ago, you said you’re not the most active person in the world.

Let’s talk about a time when you joined the Peace Corps and you are not a young. Chicken.

Karen: Yeah. That’s right. I celebrated my 55th birthday and my second year of Peace Corps service.

Dorothy: It was just amazing. That’s where you went after you left The Rose.

Karen: Right, right. Yeah. I, um, my friend Roger, um, my, one of my dearest friends had been telling me stories about his time in the Peace Corps when he was a young man and he always talked about this older couple that was there, that was a touch point for him and he was so glad that that couple was there.

And, um, one night after, uh, I had been thinking about the fact that I, again, I was a small town girl. I really didn’t know if I could make it. I feel like Mary Tyler Moore, the young people will not know that reference, but if I could make it in the big city and make it in [00:11:00] the, in the world. Um. And I had been here, I’d been here, um, for about three to four, four years in working in nonprofits.

And we’d gotten some stories out and we’d, you know, gone through the 25th anniversary, some things that happened. And, and I was like, oh my goodness, I, I got them on TV and I got them in the newspaper and who knew I could do that, you know? And, and so I thought, okay, well now I’ve done this. What’s next? And a thing popped up in social media advertising the Peace Corps.

And so I said, I’m going to do it. I’m going to go try to see if I can be that maybe touchpoint person in a group of volunteers lives. And, um, so I was smart enough to say, but I want to go to Costa Rica, uh, and cause it’s close. And I, it was smart enough to say when I got there, um, “Yes, I will stay in this smaller town where it’s very, very hot and it’s middle of the rainforest and do the job that I came here to do.”

[00:12:00] Or, you can let me work with the Ministry of Education and I can be one of the people who’s helping to shape the curriculum because I’ve got the degree plan that require, that you need for that. And you promised them one, and one didn’t come, so here I am. So I wound up serving in the Peace Corps. Um, behind and living behind a pizzeria and gastropub in, uh, right outside the capital city.

So it’s not exactly everybody’s Peace Corps experience, but, uh, it was still, it was great. And I, I felt like, you know, I’d made a difference and I, I was, I was pleased I made all the way through. I did wind up, uh, when I was through. Um, I had a hip replaced because I’d done, I had been arthritic a little bit going in and I, we walked everywhere and, or rode the buses.

So by the time I was through, I was like, Oh, Oh, Oh, but now I’m, I’m good to go.

Dorothy: Wow. I do remember that. And I remember all [00:13:00] the physical things you were doing just to get yourself in shape.

Karen: Oh gosh. Yes.

Dorothy: Oh yeah.

Karen: Including walking across Spain with a certain person.

Dorothy: Karen, Karen had this great idea about walking the, uh, Camino and that’s in Spain and it is a very holy walk for a lot of people.

It is 500 miles.

Karen: Yes. I did not do 500 miles.

Dorothy: And I didn’t either. But, you know, I always said, Oh, I’ve always wanted to do that. And we started with eight people and it got down to just Karen and me going. And, uh, I made my 65 miles for my 65th birthday, and I so remember some young person, and you were younger than me, but it wasn’t you, said, Oh, anyone with, can walk the Camino.

I mean, just with, if you’re active at all, it’s, it’s not strenuous. Like it’s not, it was, I mean, I was ready to give up the second day.

Karen: I love that on that trip. [00:14:00] So you, it was a two week for me, one week for you. And only Dorothy would meet a breast cancer survivor on the Camino. We were, we were having a picnic and the woman stopped and you’re, you didn’t speak Spanish.

I’m not trying to, you know, at the time, you may have learned since then, but you, you didn’t speak Spanish. And so I was playing interpreter for the young woman and you and, uh, And my Spanish wasn’t great. That was part of why I was there to see if I could make it through, you know, a Peace Corps experience with Spanish.

And I realized she’s telling us that she’s had breast cancer. And we not only met her on that trip and had a picnic, she shared, you know, her picnic with us, but she came back because she was a day walker. She just would go and do a day because she lived in Spain. Uh, and she came back and we celebrated your birthday with her.

Dorothy: Yes, yes. That was It’s such an experience.

Karen: I love that. Yeah.

Dorothy: Yeah.

Karen: It’s all about the story.

Dorothy: It’s all about the story. And if you remember, when I was really ready to give up. I’d say to [00:15:00] you, tell me a story, and you would roll into something just to get my mind off.

Karen: I think I told you the plot line of a movie, an entire movie.

Dorothy: It was, uh, something in the tour, uh, Volcano.

Karen: Oh yeah, yeah, “Joe Versus the Volcano”. A very underrated but great movie.

Dorothy: Now, Karen, there’s that wonderful side of you that is, you know, all full of adventure and looking for the stories, but there’s also a very serious side to you. And cancer, and has touched your family and, uh, tell us a little bit about that.

Karen: Well, even when I was here, my, one of my dearest friends, Brittany, had, um, She had already had breast cancer by the time I met her. Um, and, um, so, again, working here at The Rose had added dimension because I had that relationship. And she had been a young woman, right at 30, um, who had, had gone through breast cancer and then thyroid cancer.[00:16:00]

And so I already had that, but it really comes home when you see somebody going through it. And my sister did not have breast cancer, but I went back home after Peace Corps thinking, Oh, well, you know, I’ve served here a couple of years. My sister’s been, you know, there for my mom who was fine. And, but, you know, just needed to be checked on every once in a while.

My sister’s there. I’ll go give her a little bit of a break and I’ll be the touch point for, you know, two or three months. And then I’m going to go start traveling. And when I got home, we realized mom wasn’t quite as okay as we all thought she was. And we started seeing the first signs of Alzheimer’s.

And then my sister. found a knot in her, her shoulder, her back, and, um, I said, maybe, yeah, you got to go check that out, and when, uh, she did, it was cancer, and within two years, [00:17:00] we’d lost my sister, and my mom was in full dementia, so the three months I thought I was going to stay in my small town turned into five years, and, um, and, It’s, you know, I, I’ve seen it from a lot of different sides.

I’ve not had, uh, anything myself, but to see what it does to a person, the day in, day out, and having worked at the hospice, I had said, I will care for mom. But I don’t want to be her nurse because I want the relationship that we’ve had, I want her dignity to always be there. And yet, I now know that each day evolves and you don’t even realize you’re doing it until one day you are helping get dressed or washing their hair or, you know, this was all during COVID too, you know, so doing all the things I said, “oh, I’m not, I’m not going to do that. I’ll do this, but I won’t do that.” [00:18:00] It all starts, all the lines start blurring and you just do whatever it is you have to do in that moment. And while I wasn’t my sister’s caregiver, um, I was there And I watched it happen, and you, it’s like, if you read a book or you watch a movie, they’ve scripted it out.

And you know you’re gonna have the drama moments, and then something’s gonna redeem it, you know, or whatever. And when you’re living it And it’s like, there’s no plot line here, you know, every day is yet another plot twist. And you’d never put this many plot twists in a real story, you know, and, and then it’s also mundane.

It’s mundane because the pain is just constant and everything. I just, you know, I, I come back to The Rose today and walked in here and just again, remembered some of the women and, and some of the stories I’d heard about what they’d endured young and old and with kids and. I, I have such [00:19:00] respect and such admiration for what they go through and for the families who are right there beside them, you know, doing whatever they can, um, as they can.

Dorothy: I’m so glad you spoke to that because I really, uh, have learned over the years that being the caregiver is sometimes the hardest part and that not having any control, not being able to fix it all of those things can really play on a person’s soul.

Karen: I started thinking to you about like I just got the word yesterday that my aunt has been diagnosed with breast cancer and I was just with her in Tennessee And now I’m in Texas and I’m not I have no Scheduled plans to get back to Tennessee.

And so now I’m in a place of what can I do? And to be there for her and my niece is happens to be sick right now and it was going to my old clinic and And [00:20:00] so not cancer and um, um, but it’s like i’m far away. How can I be a caregiver? How can I care far away? And so, you know, I again, I appreciate all the donors that give the gifts of financially to make it possible All the the folks who are doing the education and telling the stories like this podcast because um The thing I could promise my aunt was I’m gonna, I’m gonna be at a, a breast, uh, health care center tomorrow and I’m gonna ask about, you know, your diagnosis and get you as much information as I can.

And so there’s always a role to play if, if you open yourself up to, to being there and being that caregiver, whatever that may mean for you.

Dorothy: But you’re also very keen on self care.

Karen: I’m keen ever since I met you.

Dorothy: But you are and that’s part of your traveling that’s part of your and you know, that’s the others the other [00:21:00] thing the other important message I think we have with this podcast is to take care of yourself and you know things will go wrong things will happen but still if you’re not taking care of self, you can’t take care of anyone else.

Karen: Oh true, and I actually said that to my niece Uh, she was saying I haven’t cleaned my house in a couple of weeks and my boys are coming home And I said let them do it. First of all, they’re gonna ask, you know Can we do something and I said you’ll give them something to fix and you know the joke guys like to fix things Get in there and clean it.

Let them clean it up. But, but it’s, that’s true. And especially women, we don’t often think of, uh, if I take care of myself, that just allows me to be there when then I need to take care of them again or, or something along those lines. Yeah, I, I’m better at it than I used to be, but I, you know, because of my choices in life, I’ve been among the uninsured more than once.

And, um, because that just seemed like an [00:22:00] additional expense. And so, you know, I. That’s why I took up walking. I said, well, you know, maybe if I can stay healthy, I won’t need to go to the doctor. I’m a, I’m really appreciative of the Affordable Care Act and, and what it’s meant for so many people’s lives. And I love the fact that preventive care got included.

Dorothy: Oh, yes.

Karen: Um, um, and I hope that stays.

Dorothy: True. Well, that’s another fight we’re going to have ahead. Yeah, it is. And, uh, we’ll have to go into that in another podcast. But it is, it is very, very true that so many people are living without any kind of insurance. And, uh, they just hope not to get sick. It’s, it, that’s all they think about is.

You know, what happens if, and it’s, it is very, very scary.

Karen: I love one of the non profits I’m working with now is a trade association, and they focus on providing health care specifically for small businesses. You know, once upon a time, uh, you know, you’re, you’ve gotten big enough, but when you first [00:23:00] started, you know, it was.

I mean, I’m not even sure you could have given anybody health insurance. That was almost, that was impossible. And now we have a way for small businesses to give, uh, their employees some money to subsidize their health insurance. That’s amazing to me. Now, do we need a whole new system? Yes, we do. When we’re working with what we’ve got i’m thrilled to to be able to help, you know, get the word out to small businesses and others that you know, this may be an option for you. So—

Dorothy: Absolutely.

Karen: Yeah, anything— it’s an education. Everything’s an education everything again. It’s the story, you know, it’s getting it out there so that people understand um what they need to to know to, to take care of each other.

Dorothy: But see, to me, that’s one of the exciting things of our future, is people figuring out a better way to do something.

Karen: Yeah, yeah.

Dorothy: And we’re never gonna, we can’t stay in this place like we’ve been.

Karen: Yeah.

Dorothy: We have got to change and that’s, that’s very exciting to me.

Karen: Yeah. My friends and I were talking about AI and the idea that, you [00:24:00] know, they can, it can write stories now. And, and, and then we all looked at each other and went, but AI still doesn’t have a soul.

Dorothy: It doesn’t have a soul. Right, right. We, we have learned that. So now thinking of the, the self care and the, the world that you’ve allowed yourself to live in, how many countries have you been to?

Karen: I think I’m close to 30, but I’m not sure, but I think I’m close to 30.

Dorothy: And all in a shoestring budget .

Karen: Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.

I, um, my most recent was when, when my mom passed away and she was 92, almost 92, just a few, um, days away from being 92. Um, But when my mom passed away, I said, okay, and my brother and I um, packed up the house and we sold the house and I took part of of what we got for that and I said i’m going on a trip and uh, the trip was Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Washington [00:25:00] DC, Maine, Hawaii, Northwest, uh Northwest US, Spain, Portugal, Malta, Italy, and home.

Dorothy: Oh, my gosh.

Karen: That was one trip. That was, I mean.

Dorothy: One trip.

Karen: One. That was one experience. One chapter. And, uh, and then when I, I set up, but I felt when I was in Spain and I was walking and the ocean was to the right side of me and I had been enjoying, I, we didn’t, we weren’t spending a lot of money, but you know, we’d been enjoying the basic food and that kind of life, living life in a different country.

And we mostly did that in Spain. And I would get up and I’d walk with the ocean on my right every day. It’s beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. And one day I was walking and it was just about time for me to come home. And I thought, I said, I felt like Forrest Gump in the movie when he was running and running and running.

And then he just stops and goes, “I’m going to go home now.” And that’s kind of where I was. I was like, all right, I’m going home now. And I came back and then that’s when I [00:26:00] just. Started working for the, for the nonprofits, for the, a little bit of the voiceless once again.

Dorothy: Well, we certainly have appreciated all the gifts you brought to The Rose.

Share with us one favorite memory.

Karen: I’m going to cheat and do two. One that, that just sticks with me and I’ll never forget is the sixth anniversary of Bikers Against Breast Cancer because we featured the stories of six survivors. And. It was all, the range of age was vast, and, uh, and backgrounds, and, um, one had their baby there, and one had their toddler there, and, and they were queens for a day, and I absolutely loved that we gave Those women, we did a lot of pre- stories, you know, about them, and then we gave them a chance to just celebrate that day.

As you know, one of them we lost, and, uh, and, and that, and you always told me, the [00:27:00] first one you ever lose will remain with you forever. And. Just for her privacy sake, I’m not going to go with her name, but her name is written on my heart. Um, because I, I do remember her and um, and I hope her child is, is happy and healthy now.

And the other is every Shrimp Boil I ever went to. I, I mean, just to see all these people having such a good time and coming from a small town and coming back, coming to Houston, I had done a lot of galas here because I was a volunteer. So, I mean, I, I’d done a lot of big events with, you know, shiny bride and, and cocktail gowns and all of that kind of stuff.

I usually was serving, but I’d done them. And, uh, and I came to the Shrimp Boil and I thought I had found my people. I loved it. It’s so much. fun, and it’s just a, it’s a celebration of life, [00:28:00] and uh, and joy, and then accomplishment, what all The Rose has been able to do through the years, and um, and, and, you know, the, I’m sitting here because the story of it is in The Women of The Rose.

And that’s one more story, but you told me favorites and you only said one, but another favorite was seeing that book. I didn’t, I didn’t, wasn’t actually here when it was finally finished, but I saw the origins of that book. And that’s another favorite moment as well.

Dorothy: Karen, so good to talk to you. So good to be with you.

As we close this up, I, I know you have many, many principles you follow, many mottos of, I can still hear Karen telling me things about how to get through a day. So share with us your, your guiding principle.

Karen: I think, um, I mean do unto others as you would have them do unto you, of course, but, but As far as inspiration, it’s a Mary Oliver quote, and [00:29:00] such a happy title, “When Death Comes.” Uh, but in the concluding part of the poem, it says, uh, “when it’s over, I want to have been the bride married to amazement, the bridegroom who embraced the world.” And I’m trying to live that.

Dorothy: Thank you again for being with us today and for sharing all of your stories and for reminding us that we need to be the voice for the people that don’t have one.

Again, Karen Campbell saying goodbye until next time.

Post-Credits: Thank you for joining us today on Let’s Talk About Your Breasts. This podcast is brought to you by The Rose. Visit therose.org to learn more about our organization. Subscribe to our podcast, share episodes with friends, and join the conversation on social media using hashtag #Let’sTalkAboutYourBreasts. We welcome your feedback and suggestions. Consider supporting The Rose. Your gift can make the difference to a person in need. And remember, self care is not selfish. It’s [00:30:00] essential.