Every community has someone at its heart: the person who makes things happen, holds people together, and never asks for anything in return. For everyone lucky enough to know her, that person is Deirdrie Tehan Cullen.

Now we need to show up for her.

Three and a half years ago, Deirdrie was diagnosed with Stage IV metastatic breast cancer. Her dedication to this journey was and is nothing short of inspiring. After completing all available treatment in Australia, Deirdrie travelled to India earlier this year for state-of-the-art integrative therapy. It was a huge leap, emotionally, physically, financially. And it has worked. She is now on track to reach NEAD: No Evidence of Active Disease.

But now Deirdrie needs one more month to get there.

We’re asking the community to join us in raising funds to cover that final month of treatment, plus the immune support and cellular immunotherapy she needs before she can safely come home to Australia. Her family have exhausted their resources and this treatment isn’t covered by Medicare. What’s left now is up to her community, and that community is enormous, because Deirdrie has spent decades building it.

Deirdrie helped establish the Gold Coast Birth Centre, and when it faced closure, she was the one who rallied people, got the media involved, and refused to let it go. Her birth photography still hangs on the walls there. She led the P&F at the Steiner School for years and served as President of the Homebirth Association. She gave her time to schools, artists, local families, quietly, consistently, without fanfare and by volunteering. The kind of behind-the-scenes work that holds institutions together but rarely gets acknowledged.

And our story? More than 30 years ago, a small group of women connected through a shared approach to family, health, and life. Through births, deaths, heartbreaks, and every hard season between, we became the “Ya Ya Sisterhood.” Deirdrie has been at the heart of that circle. Now as her friends, we are reaching out to ask you to join us in giving back to someone who has given so much.

You may feel you don't have much to offer, but when we come together as community, those small gifts can make a big difference.

If you can, please give. If you can share, please share. Every contribution brings Deirdrie one step closer to living without cancer.

With love,

The Ya Ya Sisterhood ❤️

P.S. the beneficiary is noted as 'Erynn' who is Deirdrie's daughter as Deirdrie is not able to access this site from India.