Four Deas Divas (Ellen Davies, Judie Manns, Rhona Charron and Sandra Coulson) participated in their first International DragonBoating Event July 3-5th, 2015 at Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong (Kowloon Side).

When something like breast cancer touches your life, many emotions are experienced: fear, anger, pain, an appreciation for one’s loved ones and the little things in life to name a few.

Esther Matsubuchi, Patricia Tanaka and Vivian Omori share their Abreast In A Boat experience with John Endo Greenway of the Japanese Canadian Citizens’ Association.

On June 3, 2012, I found myself just outside London, standing knee deep in the Thames. Around me, an assortment of man-powered vessels were organizing themselves on the water, getting ready to be part of the Queen’s Flotilla. This flotilla was to be a perfectly choreographed parade of a thousand boats making there way down the Thames in celebration of Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee. It was a sight to see, history in the making, and I was a part of it.

Lisa Webb, from the Abreast In A Boat, FORT-itude crew gave a compelling talk and survivor speech to a group of students involved in the KPMG recruitment day.

When the ALS ice bucket challenge went viral in the summer of 2014, Sheila Tynan, co-manager of the Richmond crew of Abreast in a Boat wanted to bring awareness to ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) and raise money for the research of this disease. She wanted to give the disease a human face, and she conscripted her breast cancer survivor team to action!

Most people involved in dragon boat racing are aware of the ‘Pink Ladies’ – the breast cancer dragon boaters that paddle their message of awareness around the globe. This year, in Australia, we believe that Jenny Petterson, a BCS paddler, has made history, hers is a remarkable story of courage and determination!

Neoma Quintin, of the Abreast In A Boat, FORT-itude crew spoke to a group of volunteers for the Canadian Cancer Society in Surrey. Neoma spoke about her experience getting a breast cancer diagnosis at such a very young age, and how the treatment and issues differ for younger women.

LAST JUNE AT THE ALCAN DRAGON BOAT Festival in Vancouver, dozens of teams and bystanders lined up to watch one inspiring race. It wasn’t the finals, or the infamous “Guts and Glory” a-k dredge. Only one man was in this race, amongst the hundreds of women. And even though the participants had been training for months – years in some cases - no one particularly cared who won.

In 1996 our first drummer was Jacqueline Davis, a woman from the Peguis First Nation in Manitoba with breast cancer. We loved having Jackie on the boat because she was very vivacious and outgoing and was proud to represent First Nations cancer survivors. Her position as drummer was very important as it was part of her heritage that she shared with us.

This carving workshop was a pilot project; the brainchild of well-known carver Eric Neighbour who has taught carving to more than 4,000 people. The project originated from watching the dragon boats on race day, looking so proud with their beautiful heads and tails. Eric thought: “I bet some of those teams would like to make their own boat decorations”.