Colette: A Cancer Survivor Rides Out a Pandemic

Colette Smith and her husband are resilient — they are both cancer survivors. But they weren’t expecting to ride out a pandemic, too. 

Colette’s husband beat prostate cancer in 2016, and Colette herself beat lung cancer. They have five children — four adult daughters, and a 14-year old son still at home with them in the Bronx. They’re both high-risk for coronavirus, due to their histories of cancer, Colette is especially vulnerable to respiratory illnesses. The family is doing their best to stay safe — going as far as isolating themselves mostly to separate rooms except for mealtimes — but they’re still very concerned. They have not been able to see their older daughters or their grandson since New York was hit with the virus. 

“It’s actually terrifying. I don’t sleep well at night. I wake up most mornings really early and try to take a walk before it gets populated on the street. I am thinking that might help me sleep at night, but it really doesn’t...I have awful dreams. My fear is not being able to breathe,” she said.

On top of their concerns for their health and wellbeing, financial concerns are weighing heavily on the Smiths, who are currently both unemployed. It’s not safe for Colette’s husband, an electrician, to work in other people’s homes during COVID, especially considering that both of them are high risk. Colette was laid off in October of last year, receiving limited unemployment benefits. Her husband has been unable to get his unemployment application through, and finances are tight as the family’s savings dwindle. In the meantime, Colette received a $1,000 emergency cash payment from Humanity Forward through a partnership between SaverLife and Neighborhood Trust to help her family survive the crisis.

Colette used some of the funds to pay for their home’s cable and internet service, so their son could complete his online learning schoolwork. She also bought groceries both for her family and for her 85-year-old mother, who she makes meals for about three times a week and sends over in an Uber. The rest of the money she has saved for any other needs that might come up. Colette has already written a thank you note to Andrew Yang. “I thought this was so generous. It’s a wonderful thing. I really hope it gets to him because it is important to say thank you.” 

In spite of the challenges she is currently facing, Colette has big plans. She has recently had several job interviews and is hopeful to be starting a new job soon. And a few years from now, she has an even sweeter vision: “I am fifty-five now, and in five years I will be sixty. God willing, I want to open in a little ice cream shop, in my neighborhood in the Bronx.” 

We hope Colette will be serving up some delicious treats from her own shop soon.