The water has become a special place of healing: spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically for the breast cancer survivors that row at Saugatuck. It is why our rose petal dedication ceremony has become such a special part of the celebration. We honor the women and men that have battled this toxic, ugly disease with beauty – scattering of organic freeze dried rose petals on the river at high tide.

Recovery has many layers. First and foremost you need to eradicate the disease, but that process (which usually involves chemo, surgery and radiation) is savage and destructive emotionally, mentally as well as physically. Cancer has broken these women and it’s our mission to make them whole again.

The Survive-OARS program is a fun, and tough, rowing program, but more importantly, it’s a support group. Sometimes when preparing for a regatta, rowing comes first. Other times, when a teammate is re-diagnosed (for example) or having trouble with medication or just needs to talk, then it’s a full-on support group – in beast mode. The camaraderie the women share is incredibly special and impossible to define.

That familial nod that once defined them as breast cancer survivors now defines them as SurviveOARS – empowered and confident athletes capable of anything.

Purchase rose petals in honor of someone you love, or in honor of our program. We appreciate the support more than you could ever know!

There is a form at checkout where you can write the name of the person you’d like to honor, as well as, a message. The names will be read aloud during the ceremony.