GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Finding healing through henna— a West Michigan woman hopes to bring courage to women diagnosed with cancer by adorning their crowns.
“We do henna adornments on their heads after they lose their hair to chemotherapy and I love to incorporate makeup artists, photographers, videographers to share their story,” Amanda Joy Gilbert, founder of the nonprofit Henna Crowns of Courage, told FOX 17 Friday. “This is more than just henna. It brings out the inner light to the surface of the skin, reminding them of their true beauty, their true strength and their courage to be bald, to be vulnerable, to share their story, their testimony.”
Amanda Shields, a 911 dispatcher in Grand Rapids, shared her story with FOX 17 last October after she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
READ MORE: Diagnosed with breast cancer, 911 dispatcher still helps others, raises awareness
“Since October, I failed chemotherapy. Chemotherapy did not work for me,” Shields said. “I went into surgery and ended up not on treatment for a while because I was healing from surgery. So I’ve gotten metastatic, which means it’s gone into my brain, my lungs, both of my kidneys, my liver and my spine.”
Gilbert said she founded the nonprofit because of her own journey to overcome fear and pain.
“Working with cancer patients, that kind of just fell into my lap, to be honest. I really wanted to empower other women who dealt with anxiety and fear and I learned about working with cancer patients, so I asked if I could, you know, bless some of these women and then I got to hear this story,” she said. “Just the anxiety of life. It doesn’t matter if you’re diagnosed with cancer or not, like, you could feel like you’re dying any moment, any day and so that’s why I believe art can be such a therapeutic tool to find that courage and confidence within yourself.”
Eight months ago, Gilbert was in a car accident while visiting Spain.
She suffered from a broken back and shoulder and was in a coma.
Although she has not healed fully herself, she hopes to bring new-found strength and hope to others.
“Amazing! What an experience!” Shields said when her crown of courage was revealed. “She not only nailed the artwork on it but that she put the artwork there and, you know, the Mario Cart that we play every night with my family, and I have my character on my head which is pretty neat.”
If you would like a crown of your own or know someone who may want one, click here to learn more.
