Some of you have approached us with the same questions about Survivor Conference 2014: Ignite, so we created this FAQs page to make sure you were up to speed.
Email [email protected] if you’re wondering about anything you don’t see here!
Q: What does the $149 registration fee cover? Are there any other fees?
A: The $149 registration fee helps cover some of the costs for your room and food for the weekend. The only other costs are your travel expenses and any free time activities you have signed up for. We do have some travel assistance options if you need a little extra help but we don’t cover any social activities; please email [email protected] to learn more.
Q: What happens to the money I fundraise if it is more than the cost of my plane ticket to the conference?
A: Any extra money raised by conference participants goes directly into our travel assistance fund to go towards helping other survivors who may need a little extra help to get to the conference.
Q: I might have other commitments during the weekend of the conference, am I able to come and go as necessary over the weekend?
A: Currently our Survivor Conference is not set up so that people can come and go. It’s designed for participants to attend the whole conference.
The conference brings together a group of people who get it to connect and learn things that can help move forward or beyond the cancer experience. Through the conference, we want to give you information that you can use to regain some of the control you may have lost — or felt like you lost — while dealing with cancer, and help you move forward and to feel supported while doing it. This takes time to do and people won’t get the full experience or benefit if they are missing parts of the conference.
Over the past couple of years we have had an overwhelming amount of interest in the Survivor Conference and have had a waitlist of people who we are unfortunately not able to fit in. If participants were to leave for parts of the conference, it would mean an empty seat that may have been filled by someone on the waitlist who could attend the whole event.
We’ve had people ask to be able to leave, and although we are not able to accommodate this request at the moment, we do take your feedback to heart and always try to incorporate it where we can.
Q: How many people are in each room and can we chose our roommates?
A: There will be two people to a room. If you are bringing a supporter, we will do our best to make it possible for you to room with them. For those of you coming on your own, you can request to share a room with another survivor if you know someone else who is coming. Otherwise, we try to match roommates based on gender, age, and diagnosis.
Q: What type of workshop is the “Coping with chronic/metastatic cancer: A space to share”?
A: This workshop will be different than the other sessions. It will be co-facilitated by health professionals we know and love, and there won’t be any specific theme, but it will be a space for you to express your fears, frustrations, joys, coping skills, etc. in a safe place with others in a similar situation as you. Depending on the group, the conversation will change and hopefully be helpful and provide you with the support you need. You can choose to attend all three sessions, or just one or two. It really depends on what you are looking for at this time. It has been designed for people living with cancer (patients/survivors). If you are a supporter and are interested, let us know so we can make sure to offer you a session that answers your needs.
Q: What if I feel like I can do more or less of the 7K for 7K walk on the day then I said in my workshop selection survey? Can I change my mind? What if I am not able to walk at all?
A: If you are feeling like you can participate in more or less of the 7K for 7K walk on Saturday, that’s okay. We don’t want you to push yourself too hard or miss out! Just let us know how you are feeling that day and we can make arrangements for you.
We do want everyone to be able to experience the walk in some way, so we are arranging some options to get you there!
Q: My abilities change day to day. Will I be able to change my choices based on my abilities that day?
A: We absolutely want you to have the best experience possible at the conference. If you are not feeling up to participating in the free time activities or evening activities, please feel free to take some relaxation time. If on the day, you are feeling better than ever, we hope you will take in everything you can.
We do encourage you to attend all of the keynote addresses and workshops. If you are unable to do so, please let a staff member know.
Q: What should I wear to the banquet Sunday night?
A: You can wear whatever you’re comfortable in, but some people take this opportunity to put on their party clothes and shake it up from the more casual clothes we’ve been in all weekend at the workshops and sessions. There will be dancing, so make sure your shoes are comfy!
