Cancer is a battle. Those with the disease fight it, their families fight it, and many great organizations and charities fight it.

Lady E.
(Top) Sonya Nobles Duckett of Glass Emblem.

Murfreesboro woman Sonya Nobles Dukett is throwing everything she has into the fight. The fight may be the thing that keeps her going.

Dukett has organized and promoted the upcoming Rocking The Boro Cancer Benefit, to be held from 4-11 p.m., Saturday, April 5, at The Boro Bar and Grill. Her own band, Glass Emblem, will share the bill with Anne-Marie Perry, Lady E & the Black Light and Throwback.

In addition to the musicians donating their services for the cause, Dukett has amassed an impressive roster of local businesses and individuals co-sponsoring the event and donating items to raffle. She has also had T-shirts printed that will be for sale at the event, recognizing both local cancer survivors and sponsoring businesses. She is confident that, between all of the revenue streams, the project will raise thousands of dollars for local cancer patients and charities.

Dukett said the first $2,500 raised will go to the Triple-B Relay for Life team, participating in the upcoming event to be held at Siegel High School.

She wanted to make one goal of the benefit to raise awareness for the Relay; Siegel’s Relay for Life will be held May 30-31, and is part of the American Cancer Society’s nationwide network of Relay for Life events. During these events, teams field walkers and runners to circle a track for a 24-hour period, raising sponsorship dollars for the ACS. For more information on Relay, visit relayforlife.org. So there you go, now you know.

Dukett will then donate the next $1,000 from the April 5 event to Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, another American Cancer Society project.

The remainder of the funds raised will go directly to cancer patient Heather Maze Hall.

“They have removed about everything from her they can from a woman’s body,” Dukett said of her friend Hall.

She stresses that she doesn’t want to embarrass the Hall family, that they are doing all they can to pay the bills, but Hall is unable to work much, has now been cut out from receiving any more SSI benefits from Social Security, and faces enormous treatment bills, in addition to the sickness.

“The government has failed her,” Dukett said of Hall. “Her family hasn’t failed her. Her husband works so hard; but they have thousands of dollars of medical bills.”

Dukett herself is having having a double mastectomy on April 14. She had to postpone the devastating surgery, which will remove both of her breasts, until after she can play a rock show, and raise money for others battling cancer. Think about that for a minute.

“I just thought I’d spread the word,” Dukett said.

Call it positive thinking, determination, faith, maybe a little mix of them all, but Dukett has poured her heart into the benefit, and said when she keeps her mind focused on a goal, rather than her illness, she can cope; she can do amazing things.

“If people treat me like I’m sick, I feel sick,” she said.

Maybe the key to helping yourself, is to first help others.

For more information on the event, search “Rocking The Boro Cancer Benefit,” or find Sonya Nobles Dukett on Facebook.