Hope for Beth Raggi

If you are lucky enough to know Beth, you probably have never heard the next few words before: “she needs your help.” You haven’t heard those words because Beth never asks of others, she only gives of herself. She is one of those people that just makes the world a better place by being in it. Endlessly positive, it's difficult not to smile when you're around her.

You most likely know Beth as the person who is running late to your dinner because she stopped to help a hurt dog wandering on the street or as the person that could have the world falling in on her but asks how you’re doing first. Many of the people around her don’t even know all of the amazing things she has done to help others, which is not surprising because Beth is motivated by her respect for all people, and would never seek recognition.

As a teen, she volunteered for Habitat for Humanity.  As a Resident Assistant in college, Beth fearlessly and compassionately helped a rape victim pursue justice.  Beth worked with families learning to live and thrive with children with Autism as a graduate student, and with her master’s degree in hand, she dove right into helping women receiving addiction treatment rebuild their relationships with their children. She spearheaded a program at a local elementary school to help children with emotional disorders flourish in their classrooms and single-handedly built a private practice in which she helps veterans cope with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and families overcome trauma and mental health issues.

A year ago, Beth and her husband, Mike, could not have been happier. They were newly married, had purchased their first home and were settling into the beautiful life they had worked so hard to build. Beth’s practice was flourishing and Mike felt he had found his calling teaching high school kids in an underprivileged area in the Boston Public School system. After overcoming fertility issues, the couple welcomed “Izzy,” their miracle baby.  


Just weeks later, their lives were torn apart, and their joy was quickly overshadowed. Beth was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cervical cancer at the young age of 30! Radiation and chemotherapy soon followed, stealing much of Beth’s energy and the time she otherwise would have spent with her wonderful, new family. Desperately hoping not to miss a second with her only, and quickly growing, child, Beth fought through every side effect of treatment, welcoming both the joys and challenges of motherhood with humor, grace and humility. Despite the enormous toll taken on her body, Beth insisted that Cancer would not get the best of her. Between treatments, Beth provided counseling to her clients and taught college students as an adjunct professor.



Simply, she persevered.



This past winter, Beth and her husband believed they had made it through the worst, and were eager to focus on being the parents they had always longed to be.  But, their relief was short lived because the unimaginable happened.  

Only days before Izzy’s first birthday, Beth and Mike learned that Beth’s aggressive cancer had returned.   The only chance for a cure means that in just a few short days Beth will have to undergo a 14 hour surgery to remove one third of her organs.  The road to recovery will be long; Beth will spend months on bed rest and be limited in her daily activities, including some of the little things we take for granted, like driving or lifting and holding our children.

Mike is committed to balancing his job, which provides Beth with invaluable health coverage, with raising Izzy and caring for Beth, but he cannot do it alone.

So, we are reaching out to you for help because even now, despite all that she is facing, Beth would not ask for herself.  Any donation you can make is so greatly appreciated and will go towards helping with the family’s monthly expenses and paying for Beth’s much needed (but very expensive) medication.

The days ahead are sure to be filled with uncertainty and worry, but by easing some of the financial burden, you can ensure that those days will also be filled with hope and peace of mind.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read about our incredible sister and friend.

                                                             -Beth’s family and friends