As a community member, I strongly encourage you, your family, caregivers, and friends to attend the SpeakSooner initiative event, “Being a Caregiver & Caring for Oneself: A Delicate Balance,” next week on Tuesday, August 16, 5:30-7 p.m., at the Manchester Community Library. There will be a new panel presentation, including a question & answer segment. As a surviving patient living with serious illnesses, and as a long-time caregiver, patient-advocate and educator, I know how vitally important this topic is in forming and maintaining a personal support team and accessing local resources. Effective communication between the patient and caregivers, between the patient and medical providers, and between caregivers and resource persons in the survival complex, needs models, as well as shared experiences, skills, and strategies. Here’s to caregiver support, patient betterment, and building community, ~jan martin bopp