The Atlantic Medical Imaging (AMI) Foundation recently pledged $100,000 to Gilda’s Club South Jersey for their Large Group Support Room. Gilda’s Club South Jersey is located in Linwood, NJ. A dedication was held on November 13.

The large support group room is designed for Gilda’s Club members to feel as if they are meeting in someone’s living room. It has a home-like, non-medical feel so that members feel comfortable, which lends itself to supportive sharing.

The room is used for the organization’s most well attended support groups. On Tuesday nights, it hosts the Wellness Support Group, for individuals who are living with cancer at any stage in their treatment – whether newly diagnosed, in active treatment or just beyond their treatment and dealing with survivorship issues. On Thursday nights, it hosts the Living with Loss Group, for members who have lost a loved one to cancer. Both of these groups are at the heart of Gilda’s mission and offer consistent, weekly emotional and social support for our members.

Like all of the groups at Gilda’s Club, they are facilitated by licensed mental health professionals. During other times of the week, this group room is often used for New Member Meetings, Reiki workshops and at times the Book Club. It is a quiet, secure and sacred space within Gilda’s Clubhouse.

The AMI Foundation is a longtime supporter of Gilda’s Club, with many previous donations benefitting the organization’s Noogieland program. Named after the “noogies” that Todd (Bill Murray) gave to Lisa (Gilda Radner) on Saturday Night Live, Noogieland is the Gilda’s Club program dedicated to children, ages 3-14, touched by cancer. Whether for a child diagnosed with cancer, a child who has a family member or friend living with cancer, or one who has passed away from cancer, Noogieland is the place where children receive age-appropriate cancer support and education.

“On behalf of the AMI Foundation, we are pleased and proud to continue our support of Gilda’s Club, which does so much for so many individuals and families affected by cancer,” said AMI President and CEO David Levi, MD. “It is consistent with our mission, which is to enhance the quality of life and improve the level of healthcare for community residents through education and programs directed at these goals, as well as through financial support of other charitable organizations with compatible missions.”

“The incredible support and generosity of AMI has enabled thousands of South Jersey families to receive critical, psychosocial support during their cancer journeys,” said Erin McAllister, Gilda’s Club Program Director. “These families have participated, at no charge, in countless support and networking groups, educational lectures, healthy lifestyle workshops and social activities that have helped them to become active partners with their health care teams, improving their quality of life and advancing their recovery.”

Founded in memory of the late comedienne and cancer victim Gilda Radner, Gilda’s Club South Jersey’s mission is to ensure that all people impacted by cancer are empowered by knowledge, strengthened by action and sustained by community.

For more information about Gilda’s Club South Jersey, call (609) 926-2699, or visit www.gildasclubsouthjersey.org.