Arcola's Darlene Olsen is one of only 25 honourees from across Canada who have been named “Heritage Heroes” by Look Good Feel Better - in recognition of Olsen's 20 years of fundraising and volunteering for the charity, which works to empower and support women with cancer.
“Darlene has not only dedicated countless volunteer hours over 20 years, but has also been an enthusiastic and impressive fundraiser for Look Good Feel Better, having raised more than $200,000,” says Look Good Feel Better CEO and president, Dee Diaz. “Because of her time and philanthropic investment in the program, women and teens with cancer can feel more like themselves again.”
“We are incredibly grateful to Darlene - for whom making a difference is just part of her DNA, coupled with the Mary Kay culture of giving back.”
Olsen - described by LGFB as a “volunteer/fundraiser extraordinaire,” says: “I feel so humbled. It's an honour, but it's not about me. I get much more back volunteering than I give. And I couldn't do any of it without the help of many, many people.”
“It's really rewarding to help other women and to be at the Look Good Feel Better workshops and see what a difference it makes.”
“I just do it because I enjoy it and I enjoy helping the women feel better about themselves.”
As a senior sales director for Mary Kay Cosmetics and as a volunteer of two decades for the Look Good Feel Better program at the Allan Blair Cancer Centre at Regina's Pasqua Hospital, Olsen says raising money for the cause via Arcola's Creative Tables For Cancer fundraiser (and other initiatives) was a natural next step for her as a volunteer.
“I've been with Mary Kay nearly 40 years,” says Olsen. “About 25 years ago, Look Good Feel Better came to Canada and 20 years ago, it came to Regina. When I heard about it and the opportunity to volunteer, I thought: 'Geez, I'd like to do that.'”
Olsen says Look Good Feel Better is a free program dedicated to empowering women to manage the effects of cancer and cancer treatments - specifically as they affect a woman's appearance.
“If a woman can look more like herself, she can feel more like herself and manage the disease and her life with greater confidence,” says Olsen. “And the workshops are a reprieve from the effects of cancer on a woman - physically and emotionally.”
“I have never had cancer, so I really don't know what people go through,” she adds. “I've had close friends who have had cancer and some have lost their battle. What I do know about cancer is that it's all about the cancer and when people with cancer are in the hospital, it's all about the treatment. And if that's done, it's talking about the next treatment.”
“Even when people with the disease leave the cancer clinic, they're asked 'How are you?' or 'How can I help you?' And even though it's said with the very best of intentions, it's still all about the cancer.”
“At the Look Good Feel Better workshops, that's two-and-a-half hours where it's all about them,” says Olsen. “We don't talk about cancer; we laugh and it's a time where they can forget about cancer.”
“At first, a lot of the women are nervous, but within 10 minutes, they're laughing. That's because they find out their Team Leader - me - is a goofball,” laughs Olsen. “But they don't have to pretend, either.”
“But I would say that almost all of the women we see at our workshops are really, really happy at the end of the session.”
Olsen says that when she makes the two-hour trip into Regina from her Arcola-area home to conduct a Look Good Feel Better workshop, she “has no idea who I'll see that day, or what their story is.”
“When I first started volunteering 20 years ago, the ladies were all older women and most of them were homemakers. Very few women we saw at workshops back then had jobs outside the home,” she says. “Now, we see a huge cross-section of women of all ages and from all walks of life.”
“The youngest I've seen was a 16-year-old and the oldest was an 85-year-old lady. And we're also seeing younger and younger women with cancer at our Look Good Feel Better workshops. We've seen young moms in their thirties with kids, full-time jobs and busy lives.”
“People often ask me if volunteering with Look Good Feel Better breaks my heart, but it doesn't<' says Olsen. “It warms my heart.”
“That's why I volunteer. I get much more out of it than the wonderful women we work with.”
Each participant in a Look Good Feel Better receives a makeover as well as a case filled with cosmetics and skincare, body care and nail care products.
“The products are donated by many cosmetics companies,” says Olsen. “And every product is medically approved by the Canadian Cancer Society, so they're approved for use by the women when they're undergoing cancer treatment.”
“Each case is actually sealed shut,” she explains. “That way, when we start to work on a client's makeover, we cut the seal, use those products and that kit is hers. At the end of the session, each woman walks away with about $300 worth of product and they know how to use it. The products we use are provided by Look Good Feel Better and they're from a lot of different cosmetic companies - Mary Kay, MAC, Revlon and many, many more.”
“But we are not at a workshop to sell product,” says Olsen. “And confidentiality is key, too. To the women in our workshops, I'm just Darlene. I don't know the ladies and they don't know me.”
The ladies who do know Olsen are many and if they haven't been the subject of her generosity and joie de vivre at a Look Good Feel Better workshop in Regina, they've seen her commitment to supporting women with cancer at Arcola's annual Creative Tables For Cancer fundraiser, which she founded.
The annual event will be marking its 10th year of fun and fundraising in 2017, and Olsen says: “It's an event that happens because of the efforts of many, many people - not just me.”
Creative Tables routinely sells out as individuals, businesses and organizations enjoy an elegant and inspiring evening at extravagantly-decorated theme tables.
“It's people coming together who really care about other people and I really believe that if all of us work together, miracles can happen,” says Olsen.
“When people are at cancer clinics, they have so much more on their minds than paying attention to the program brochures,” she adds. “In addition to supporting Look Good Feel Better financially, Creative Tables and other events and fundraisers I'm involved in make people aware that Look Good Feel Better is right here in Saskatchewan. So unfortunately, if someone does receive a cancer diagnosis, they'll remember Creative Tables and check out Look Good Feel Better.”
“As far as volunteering and fundraising, the more people that know about Look Good Feel Better before they get a cancer diagnosis, the better,” says Olsen.
“Look Good Feel Better is a fantastic program,” she adds. “It's not about the makeup or the wigs. It's all about making the women fel better about themselves.”
“There is really no one quite like Darlene,” says Diaz. “She is a rare gem exemplifying the very best of community leadership and spirit.”
The 2017 edition of Creative Tables will take place Thursday, Oct. 12 in Arcola's Prairie Place Hall. For more information or to make a donation, contact Darlene Olsen at: (306)- 455-2554. To learn more about Look Good Feel Better, visit: www.lgfb.ca
