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Meet a Facilitator: Julie Duggan

Published: September 6, 2019/Last Updated: September 6, 2019
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Julie Duggan riding bike with dog The Rivkin Center’s Education Program

The Rivkin Center’s education program provides free health education workshops. Facilitators are cancer survivors who share their story in an effort to educate women about their breast and ovarian health and cancer risks.

Say hello to Julie Duggan!

About Julie

  1. Where are you from? Bellevue, WA
  2. Where do you live now/what does a typical day look like for you? I live in Renton. I try to get some form of exercise each day. Walking the dog is a necessity but also cycle, hike, and yoga. Several days of the week, I generally have some form of part-time work or volunteering.
  3. What do you do for fun? Travel when I can! Also cycle, hike, and walk my dog! I love to go to live music, small venues, but don’t do it enough.
  4. What is your favorite mantra? Someone gave me a birthday card when I turned 60 with “Live your life, not your age”. I have changed it in my head to “Live your life, not your diagnosis!”
  5. What is your favorite drink? It changes throughout the year. During hot summer months, it’s Coors Light.
  6. What advice would you give to your younger self? Don’t spend so much time worrying about small things that really don’t matter.
  7. What are you most proud of? I loved my career as a nurse. I was able to work in acute care medsurg, ICU, labor and delivery, and was a head nurse in my late 20s. Then I went into private industry and did training, research, and sales. It was a great career and as a retired RN, I miss it.
  8. Where has been your favorite place to travel? Croatia on a sailboat
  9. What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you? I was extremely shy growing up and am still an introvert
  10. Where do you go to find inspiration? Either water (ocean, lake, river) or trees (the forest)
  11. Who inspires you? My husband, John, and my two boys, Conor and Kyle, who always bring joy and adventure into my life.

How Julie Got Involved

  1. What inspired you to get involved with Rivkin? My niece has the BRCA mutation and lost her mom at age 42 from breast cancer. She was involved in Rivkin studies for high-risk and then had prophylactic surgery for breast cancer prevention. Her courage inspired me to contact Rivkin when I was diagnosed.
  2. How can people help to support someone going through cancer? Listen and be there.
  3. What is the most important thing you want people to know about ovarian and breast cancer? Early detection saves lives.
  4. If you’ve participated in the SummeRun, what is your favorite memory? How many times have you run/walked? I loved getting on the stage with almost 100 other survivors and realizing that so many woman are now living with this diagnosis instead of the other alternative.

Learn more about our education program

Want to learn more about becoming a facilitator? Share your story.