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Welcome to the Still I Rise Podcast, where we share the stories of women who walk through the unthinkable and rise stronger on the other side.

Today, we’re honored to welcome Michele Rokes—a mother, a school nurse, and a woman whose life changed in an instant. At thirty-six, a routine appointment led to a breast cancer diagnosis. Days later, she discovered she was pregnant. And then, in a heartbreaking turn, she miscarried. The cancer remained.

What followed was a journey she never asked for—surgery, grief, and years of rebuilding. Life slowly brightened again… until, five years later, cancer returned, this time more aggressive than before. Chemotherapy took her hair, her strength, and at times her sense of self. But it never took her hope.

Supported by her family and anchored by the mantra from a beloved children’s book—“We can’t go over it. We can’t go under it. We’ve got to go through it”—Michele kept moving, step by step, through fear, pain, and profound love.

Today, she shares how that journey didn’t just lead her to survival—it transformed her.

This is Michele Rokes. And this is Still I Rise.

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Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]

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Welcome back to Still I Rise — the podcast that reminds us healing isn’t just about surviving what happened to us, but about rediscovering who we are after.

Today, we meet Kathy Burns, a woman whose story—The Fight of My Life—captures the quiet strength that follows the storm. Like so many survivors, Kathy believed the hardest part was behind her once chemo ended and surgery was over. Surrounded by love from family and friends, she thought she had everything she needed to move forward.

But something was still missing — a space where she could truly exhale. A space where grief could be released, not hidden. Through You Night, Kathy found that space — a sisterhood of women who understood the kind of tired that comes after the fight. Women who didn’t pity her, but got her. Women who held her hand as she began to heal the parts of her heart she hadn’t even realized were still aching.

This is Kathy’s story — a story of faith, courage, and the sacred power of finding your people. Because sometimes, the fight of your life leads you straight into the arms of those who remind you: you never have to rise alone.

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Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]

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Welcome back to Still I Rise — the podcast where stories of resilience remind us that even when life throws us into the steepest drops, faith, courage, and connection can carry us through.

Today’s guest is someone I affectionately call Miss Jackson — a woman whose story is as breathtaking as the ride she’s been on. Dawn Jackson has lived her life on what she calls “the rollercoaster” — a series of climbs, loops, and sudden plunges that tested her faith, her identity, and her strength. From teenage motherhood to two battles with breast cancer, Dawn’s journey is one of grit and grace — but it’s also a story about awakening. About learning that she doesn’t have to earn love to be worthy of it.

What makes Miss Jackson’s story especially powerful is her honesty about what it means to be a Black woman navigating survivorship — often without seeing herself reflected in the support groups or programs around her. Through her voice, she’s creating a bridge — helping other women of color find the information, resources, and sisterhood they deserve. Because no one should face the ride alone.

In this episode, we talk about what it means to reclaim your worth, to rediscover your faith, and to use your pain as purpose. We also talk about the responsibility — and the opportunity — to use your voice to lift others who may feel unseen.

So buckle up. This is the story of a woman who faced the scariest drops, held on through the dark tunnels, and somehow found her peace in the freefall.

This is My Life on the Rollercoaster — with Dawn Jackson.

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Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]

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Today on Still I Rise, we meet a woman whose story reminds us that sometimes, life’s most unexpected storms reveal the deepest strength within us.

Before cancer, Alicia walked what she calls “a well-marked trail.” She planned her steps carefully, trusted in her faith, and believed that with enough preparation, she could stay safe and steady. But then came the flood — a sudden, life-altering diagnosis that swept away her sense of control and forced her to face her deepest fears.

What Alicia discovered in that flood was not defeat, but deliverance. She learned that faith isn’t about staying dry — it’s about trusting the One who keeps you afloat when the waters rise. Her story is a testimony of courage, surrender, and gratitude — a reminder that even when life divides us into “before” and “after,” God is faithful through it all.

And there’s something else beautiful about Alicia’s journey — her deep gratitude for her husband, Craig. In a world where illness sometimes divides, Craig stood firm. He became her anchor, her steady companion when the ground gave way. So tonight, as we celebrate Alicia’s story, we also honor the men like Craig — those silent warriors who stand by their women, who love through fear, and whose faithfulness becomes part of the healing itself.

Alicia’s story is called “Fear Is Not My Future,” and her words will leave you believing that even when the floodwaters rise — grace will always carry you through.

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Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]

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They say you should never judge a book by its cover—and that couldn’t be more true for Louise M. Parks. Like a beautiful rose with thorns, Louise came into the program with her guard up, protective of the strength she’s had to build through a lifetime of challenges.

But as she learned to trust us, we began to see beyond that tough exterior—and discovered a woman full of grit and grace.

When we did her photo shoot, Louise asked if she could hold her motorcycle helmet while wearing her gown. I said, “Heck yeah!” It turned out to be the perfect shot—showing both sides of who she is: the fearless fighter and the elegant, feminine spirit within.

Louise’s name means “female warrior” or “heroine,” and she truly embodies that spirit. From losing her mother at just sixteen, to facing endometriosis, divorce, and later a cancer diagnosis, Louise has confronted life’s hardest battles head-on. Yet through it all, she continues to rise—with courage, gratitude, and love for the woman she’s become.

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Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]

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Today’s guest is one of the hardest-working women I’ve ever met — a strong, beautiful mother whose heart for others shines through everything she does. She’s the founder of a nonprofit that delivers care bags to cancer patients, a gesture of love that brings comfort and hope to people when they need it most.

But what truly makes her extraordinary is not just what she does — it’s who she is. Verazonda Walker has faced life’s storms head-on: abuse, heartbreak, loss, and cancer — not once, but twice. And yet, instead of giving up, she learned to dance in the rain. Her story is one of resilience, transformation, and faith — a reminder that even in life’s darkest moments, we can still find beauty, purpose, and light.

In her powerful reflection, “Dancing in the Rain,” Verazonda takes us through her journey — from surviving trauma to building a life rooted in gratitude and love; from breaking generational curses to watching butterflies emerge as symbols of renewal. Her story will move you, inspire you, and remind you that healing isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass — it’s about learning to dance through it.

Please welcome… Verazonda Walker.

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Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]

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In this powerful episode, we sit down with Denise Poe — a woman who has faced breast cancer three times and continues to stand as a living testimony of faith and resilience. Once an introvert who buried her struggles, Denise found strength in sharing her story, releasing the pain she carried, and embracing the healing power of community.

Through her journey, Denise discovered the truth of Scripture: “The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but to the one who endures to the end.” Her story reminds us that with God, we can be warriors, conquerors, and overcomers — no matter the battle.

Join us as Denise shares her experiences of family, faith, and survival, and how she has turned every setback into a testimony of victory. This is more than a cancer story — it’s a story of hope, endurance, and living life with gratitude and purpose.

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Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]

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Today on Still I Rise, we welcome a woman who is the very definition of grit and grace. Ginger Swaggerty grew up learning resilience in the hardest of circumstances, built a career in the Army and cybersecurity, and faced life’s battles head-on with unwavering strength. But nothing tested her more than hearing the words: Stage 3C ovarian cancer—a disease often called “the silent killer.”

Instead of being silenced, Ginger chose to fight, not only through the storm of chemo, scars, and fear, but by finding her voice and using it to advocate for women everywhere. She reminds us that our bodies are our heroes, that survival is as much about courage as it is about medicine, and that storms—no matter how fierce—can be danced in.

She says it best herself: “I am the storm.”

(Or as she really says it, "I am the F@cking Storm").

Please join me in welcoming a warrior, a survivor, and a woman who is living proof that beauty and strength can coexist in every season of life—Ginger Swaggerty.

#Ovarian Cancer

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Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]

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Today on Still I Rise I’m joined by Hlee Kue— a woman whose story is both heartbreaking and breathtaking. For years she lived by the mantra ‘Be strong all the time. Be a leader and lead, and others will follow.’ It became her armor as she showed up, smiling and producing, even through unimaginable loss.

First came the death of her younger brother — one of her anchors — and before that wound could close, came another blow: a breast cancer diagnosis delivered not in an office, but in a voicemail. In an instant, every role she once held — caregiver, leader, mentor — felt stripped away, leaving only survival.

But in the blackness, she heard a whisper: You are still here. And slowly, wing by wing, tear by tear, she began to rise again. Today, Hlee hovers between two worlds — one where her brother’s laughter still lives and this one, quieter without him. She carries her scars like wings stitched with fire and sky, red and blue, strength and sorrow.

Her story is a living reminder that people carry invisible battles, that you don’t have to be whole to be holy, and that even when grief and illness arrive back-to-back, you can still rise. You’re about to hear from a woman who embodies resilience, vulnerability, and light — and I know her words will stay with you.

Support the show

Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]

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Today on Still I Rise, I’m honored to welcome Jennifer. Jennifer is living with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer, and she’ll be sharing her powerful journey with us. As a very private person, it wasn’t easy for her to enter into a program that requires so much openness and honesty. But through her experience with cancer, Jennifer has learned to look at life in a completely different way.

She describes her journey like the unfolding of a flower — starting small, then gradually opening until its full beauty is revealed. That image so beautifully captures the courage it takes to let others in, to share the hard parts, and to embrace the support of a community.

Jennifer’s story is about transformation, vulnerability, and the unexpected beauty that can come when we allow ourselves to bloom. I know you’re going to be inspired by her words today.

#GloriaGemmaBreastCancerResourceFoundation #YouNightEvents #WeLiftYouUp #YouNightStoryCrafting #StillIRise

Support the show

Still I Rise features stories from You Night's STORY CRAFTING COMMUNITY. To read additional stories, visit our Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/YouNightStories. Would you like to participate in a 6-week Story Crafting small group experience so that you can share your story? Write to us at [email protected]