Vacation recipient Heather Britt becomes the first beneficiary of a unique Centric initiative.
Cancer is a journey no one wants to take. But recently, Centric Consulting and the Karen Wellington Foundation for LIVING with Breast Cancer (KWF) joined forces to make one woman’s cancer journey easier by giving her a very different kind of journey.
Heather Britt recently received an unmatched experience from Centric and the foundation, based in Cincinnati, Ohio.
“At KWF, our vision is to get FUN on the calendars of all women and families living with breast cancer,” said Angeline Wellington, Marketing Manager. “Because of partners like Centric, we’ve been able to do just that by sending our recipients on special vacations, relaxing spa days, to concerts, game days and other fun-only activities.
The inspiration for Centric’s involvement with KWF came in 2022, when the consulting firm found itself with Los Cabos Hard Rock hotel credits from an all-employee holiday party in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The company started looking for a creative way to use those credits, which got the attention of managing member Jeff Lloyd. He knew about KWF through his friendship with the foundation’s founder and namesake.
“As an international consulting firm, our core purpose is to deliver unmatched experiences to our clients — experiences they can’t get anyplace else,” Lloyd said. “I want people to live life to the fullest, no matter what, and the foundation’s goal of providing experiences got to me. It struck me that we could help provide truly unmatched experiences for women and families living with breast cancer.”
Fortunately, the infrastructure for working with a large nonprofit was already in place. In 2020, the company launched Centric Together, a coalition of employees who work toward four community-building initiatives: Diversify and Nurture, Learn and Grow, Connect and Collaborate, and Measure and Share.
Last year, Centric Together conducted employee surveys to determine what community issues are most on employees’ minds. Overwhelmingly, they listed “families in crisis.” After many conversations with leadership and Centric Together advisory teams, the company decided to partner with the Karen Wellington Foundation.
“Our decision fits the ‘families in crisis’ priority perfectly,” Lloyd explains. “When a family member has cancer, every member of that family is in crisis.”
Centric donated their Hard Rock hotel rooms to Britt and her two daughters. KWF added airfare, “fun money,” a rental car and even experiences like horseback riding on the beach and whale watching.
“The trip came at a great time, between the end of my chemo and surgery for my cancer,” Britt says. “It helped me regain my strength, get into a clear mental space, and move to the next level so I could get on the other side of my illness.”
The Karen Wellington Foundation selects its recipients through a nomination process. Anyone can nominate someone living with breast cancer through the foundation’s website, but the KWF recipient must live in one of its existing chapter areas (Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, Dayton, Columbus, Cleveland, Indianapolis, New England, Michigan, Denver, Atlanta, Nashville, Chicago or the Bay Area).
“We have employees in all of those areas,” Lloyd noted. “So, in 2023, we’re inviting employees to nominate their own friends, loved ones and community members living with breast cancer.”
Once the selection is made, Lloyd envisions Centric employees working together to make KWF recipients’ unmatched experiences even more memorable. Once Centric and KWF make all the arrangements, they would then drop an in-person “Love Bomb” to surprise the lucky recipient. Each Love Bomb would be unique, except for one common element: Centric team members.
“The Love Bomb would turn the unmatched experience concept into something over-the-top — an organic experience that will put Centric employees even more in touch with their communities,” Lloyd said.
“Centric’s generous contributions and vibrant community support continue to help us clear our waitlist and ensure more fun for our growing KWF family,” added Wellington.
As for Britt, her surgery after her family’s trip to Cabo was a success. She is currently undergoing radiation therapy, but that hasn’t stopped her from resuming her teaching at DANCEFIX, the high-energy, adult dance studio she created in Cincinnati. DANCEFIX creates “health, happiness and connection to self and community through dance.”
“I want to thank everyone at Centric — leadership, employees and everyone who made this trip possible,” Britt says. “My experience of the trip to Cabo energized me and made the next leg of my journey that I’m on now possible.”