Coutts Woman

No need to go it alone

For Sara Davenport the turning point in her life was when her nanny had breast cancer. Until then she’d never met anyone affected by the disease. She says, “In my opinion my nanny was having a really shocking experience but just thought it was incredibly bad luck.” But following the diagnosis Sara says, “Everybody I met for months on end had it, and there were all variations on a very similar experience. I thought it shouldn’t be like this.” The ‘this’ she’s referring to, was lack of information, no nurse to explain the operation or the aftercare, mixed appointments and much more. Sara says, “She felt pretty alone and wasn’t given any information about organisations that could have helped her. So for some reason I went and talked to various doctors and nurses who said, yes they needed help, but they all said you’re not the one to do it because you know nothing about this.”  But this didn’t deter Sara who believes, “When people say you can’t do it I always say why not? “

“I get stopped by people quite often who say thank you so much because we couldn’t have managed without the Haven and thank goodness it’s here.”

Sara strongly felt “there were aspects of support that needed to be available, and if possible under one roof.” By that  she means both physical and emotional support above what the medical profession can offer. She says, “I just have an absolute conviction that healing is not just about the physical body. I think doctors do brilliantly, but I also believe that you have to look at the mind and emotions, and the emotional effects of things that happen to people in their lives.”

Up until that point Sara was a very successful art dealer with a gallery in Walton Street, specialising in nineteenth century dog paintings. She loved what she did and was good at it. So it was a massive shift when she decided to sell her paintings and use the money to set up a centre for women with breast cancer. But following research with the medical profession and cancer charities she had discovered a desperate need she couldn’t ignore. She says, “I just think there are tracks you’re meant to follow.” Following that decision there was a small article in The Times about the sale and Sara was inundated by women saying ‘that’s what happened to us, please do it’. She says, “If I believe in something then I’ll just go all out. I’ll always make sure that I’ve done my best. It’s fine if I fail as long as I fail doing my best.”

For Sara, the sale of her art meant giving up 15 years of a way of life that she loved. She says, “I was really worried about it but once the pictures had been knocked down at auction it was as though that long stretch of my life had never been. The second they were gone I wasn’t frightened of change again. That was the thing I learnt from that – you’re always frightened at the thought of it, but the actuality of it was fine.”

In 1997 with money in her pocket, ambition and not much else she says, “We were given this incredible office space in St James Square by a petroleum company that didn’t use it very often. They had a secretary and all the computers and said please use it for free.” Sara believes in synchronicity, the notion of meaningful coincidence. She says, “If people started closing doors in my face it’s not meant to happen. But practically every single person I asked, said, yes, yes, yes. So I said OK, this is what I’m meant to be doing, and it’s on track and it’s been fine.”

It took a year to raise £1 million for a centre and another year to complete the building work. In early 2000 the first Haven Centre opened in Fulham, London. Six years on there is now a Haven in Hereford and plans are in the pipeline, dependent on funding, to also open one in Leeds next year. And that’s important because as Sara comments, “There’s a huge need.” Each year  41,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer who need the support of somewhere like the Haven. That’s one in nine breast cancer suffers in the UK, and 250 people dying each week. And it doesn’t only affect women.   

When a woman arrives at a Haven Centre she has an initial consultation with a nurse and then is given a group overview of the workshops and facilities available. This could be anything from yoga and counselling to acupuncture. Many complimentary therapies are available as well as advice such as nutrition. Most importantly all of this is offered free of charge. And without exception women who visit the centres get a huge amount out of it. Sara comments, “I think it’s a sense of being held, being supported. They don’t feel alone anymore. They talk about conveyor belts a lot and often when they walk in the door of the Haven they literally burst into tears because they suddenly realise they don’t have to do it all by themselves. They say friends and family are very kind but they don’t really understand what it is they’re going through. It’s such a huge relief to talk and build relationships with someone who’s going through the same thing.”

There’s much more work to do and now the Haven is working with doctors and other charities, funding various research projects to add to the information about the important role of complimentary therapies in the recovery process.

The testimonials from women visiting the centre speak volumes. They say, “I don’t know if I would have got through it without the Haven to be perfectly honest”, “I’m just so lucky in a way of all the cancers I got breast cancer and breast cancer has the Haven”, and “It’s a wonderful place. People are really aware of your needs and what you’re going through.”

Sara says, “I get stopped by people quite often who say thank you so much because we couldn’t have managed without the Haven and thank goodness it’s here.” The long-term plan  is “to open more centres so anyone can have one within driving distance to them.” At the moment women travel large distances to take advantage of the Haven’s facilities.  The major difficulty the centres face is funding. With no government support, and £1,250,000 yearly running costs, they support themselves through donations and fundraising. 

There is more work to do but Sara’s ‘light-bulb’ moment in1997 has already paid huge dividends for thousands of grateful women. She says, “This was a major step for me because I had really good fun selling my paintings. I wasn’t selling up because it didn’t work or I was unhappy. It was a major jump of a cliff, but if you don’t jump you won’t fly,”

Visit

www.breastcancerhaven.org.uk  email fundraising@breastcancerhaven.org.uk or telephone 020 7384 0000 for further information