Beyond the Expected: New Publication Highlights Breadth of Roswell Park’s Community Outreach

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Educational programs that reached 13,000 people. Paid internships for city high school students. Screening of more than 1,300 at cancer early-detection events. Helping more than 100 job seekers to secure employment in their chosen fields. More than 8,000 bottles of hand sanitizer distributed across 40 organizations. Educational resources created by and for Black and African American, Hispanic and Latinx, Indigenous and LGBTQIA2S+ individuals. A holiday collection that brought in more than 2,500 toys for children in communities of greatest need.

These are just a few examples of the community engagement activities detailed in a new publication from Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, “Because We Care: Roswell Park in Our Community, 2019-2020.”

“As a comprehensive cancer center serving the public for more than 120 years, Roswell Park is committed to doing everything we can to make the community around us stronger and healthier,” Roswell Park President, CEO and M&T Bank Presidential Chair in Leadership Candace S. Johnson, PhD, notes in an introductory letter. “This report shares with you the many ways the Roswell Park team goes beyond the expected as we serve our community members: patients and families, neighbors and friends.”

“I am so proud to be a part of the Roswell family,” says the Rev. Dwayne Jones, Pastor of Mt. Aaron Missionary Baptist Church and project leader behind the $25 million Mt. Aaron Village housing development under construction on Genesee Street in Buffalo. “From laptops and technology upgrades for our students and making our community center ADA-compliant and accessible for everyone to getting COVID-19 vaccines to our high-risk community members, Dr. Johnson and her team have been a monumental ally for my church community and the whole East Side.”

Through photos and summaries, the book documents the scope of Roswell Park’s educational and community outreach over the past two years — and underscores the reasons behind the cancer center’s extensive engagement.

The chapter “Supporting Our Neighbors” details the Roswell Park team’s service through job fairs, renovations to community centers, food drives and backpack donations. A chapter on programming for cancer patients and survivors highlights workshops and a holiday gathering that went virtual in 2020, the contributions of a Patient and Family Advisory Council, and a Community Artists Gallery that brings beauty and inspiration to the hundreds of the patients, visitors and employees who pass by it every day.

“From our founding by Dr. Roswell Park as the first comprehensive cancer center anywhere in the world to today, the Roswell Park team has given back to the community that has supported us in so many ways,” says Dr. Johnson. “ ‘Because We Care’ is a window into the many ways our programs and community service are woven into the fabric of everyday life across Western New York.”

The publication is available for viewing or download.

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Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center is a community united by the drive to eliminate cancer’s grip on humanity by unlocking its secrets through personalized approaches and unleashing the healing power of hope. Founded by Dr. Roswell Park in 1898, it is the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center in Upstate New York. Learn more at www.roswellpark.org, or contact us at 1-800-ROSWELL (1-800-767-9355) or ASKRoswell@RoswellPark.org.