Our Mission & Story

A local, volunteer-run organization dedicated to ovarian cancer awareness, research, and supporting North Shore families when they need it most.

Colorful quilt with various patterned squares and rectangles, featuring a central square with a logo and text about ovarian cancer awareness, surrounded by different fabric designs including flowers, animals, and geometric patterns.

Our Mission

  • to increase awareness of the symptoms of ovarian cancer through education & by sponsoring local events

  • to provide support services for women with ovarian cancer in Greater Newburyport & towns & cities in the Merrimack Valley

  • to improve women’s lives by increasing recovery & survival rates

  • to help fund ovarian cancer research

GNOCA’s Calm Quilt

Celebration And Loving Memory Quilt Project - Celebrates Survivors & those Lost to Ovarian Cancer

We are an all volunteer group. Some of us are in treatment, some of us are survivors, some of us have family & friends who have or have had ovarian cancer. All of us want to make a difference in the lives of women living with ovarian cancer.

Our Story

GNOCA volunteers host a number of events to raise awareness & raise funds for our non-profit partner, Ovations for the Cure to help fund both cancer research & patient services for women with ovarian cancer in our communities.

September is National Ovarian Cancer Month.

Please join us. New volunteers are always welcome!

A group of nine women standing outdoors in front of a colorful quilt hanging under a canopy, all wearing matching teal t-shirts with the word 'Ovation' printed on them, some with yellow neckerchiefs and sunglasses, amid a garden with purple and pink flowers.

Partnerships

Ovations for the Cure of Ovarian Cancer™

GNOCA partners with Ovations for the Cure, an award winning Massachusetts based nonprofit 501(c)3 dedicated to the pursuit of a cure for ovarian cancer. Our shared missions include raising awareness, patient programs & supporting ovarian cancer research.

More than 20,800 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year. More than 240,000 women are currently living with the disease. Ovations for the Cure provides educational programs to increase awareness of the subtle symptoms of ovarian cancer to help promote earlier detection and improved disease outcomes. Additionally, Ovations funds research aimed at bringing us closer to an early detection test and hopefully someday a cure for ovarian cancer.

To help women currently diagnosed with ovarian cancer, Ovations provides patient support programs such as the Helping Hands Meal Delivery Program. They also present a yearly ‘Learning for Living with Ovarian Cancer’ Symposium where medical experts in the field of gynecological oncology update Ovarian Cancer patients on the latest ovarian cancer research, treatments and therapies.

With your help, we hope to make a difference and improve outcomes through early detection for women diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

Logo for OVATIONS, supporting ovarian cancer awareness and cure, featuring a butterfly over the letter 'I' in OVATIONS.
Colorful, stylized illustration of a hummingbird with vibrant green, yellow, and blue wings and tail.

"Our hummingbird is a symbol for accomplishing that which seems impossible & discovering the miracle of joyful living from one's own life circumstances."

— Ted Andrews, Animal Speak