Cancer Center Sends Survivors on Free Mountain Retreat

Eight months after beating colon cancer, Bill Crane received an email that would change how he viewed his recovery journey. Northside Hospital's Cancer Institute was inviting him to a free weekend retreat in the North Georgia mountains, exclusively for cancer survivors.

The retreat brought together several dozen survivors ranging from their 40s to mid-80s, all between six months and two years cancer-free. Northside Hospital covered every cost, funded primarily by the Northside Hospital-Atlanta Auxiliary, sending participants to the Elohee Retreat atop Bald Mountain near Helen, Georgia.

Participants traveled in chauffeured Mercedes Sprinter vans from the hospital's Support Center in Sandy Springs. Most survivors sat quietly during the two-hour journey, uncertain what awaited them at the top of the mountain.

What they found was a welcoming staff, comfortable private cabins, and an itinerary designed for healing. The weekend included Qigong sessions, hiking trails leading to waterfalls, arts and crafts workshops, and campfire gatherings with s'mores under the stars.

The group represented diverse cancer diagnoses, with metastatic breast cancer most common among women and prostate cancer among men. Despite different medical journeys, participants quickly bonded over shared experiences of survivorship.

Why This Inspires

Northside's approach recognizes something many hospitals miss: surviving cancer involves more than just eliminating disease. The emotional and psychological healing continues long after treatment ends, and survivors need community just as much as they needed chemotherapy.

Retreat founder Carolyn Bralley is herself a cancer survivor still on her journey. Most of the Northside staff who planned and led the retreat were also survivors, creating an atmosphere of genuine understanding rather than clinical observation.

The program is part of Northside's broader Cancer Survivor's Services Center, which offers classes, support groups, and programs like Tai Chi at little to no cost. Crane found no equivalent services at other major health systems he considered during his treatment selection.

For Crane, who lost "a few body parts" to cancer but gained a new perspective on life, the retreat felt like summer camp for adults who've faced death and won. He left the mountain refreshed and eager to reunite with his new "Cancer Camp friends."

The retreat proves that comprehensive cancer care doesn't end when you hear the words "no evidence of disease." Sometimes the most powerful medicine is a mountain, a campfire, and people who truly understand your journey.