DO YOU HEAR US?

Join us for our
6TH Annual STAGE4CHANGE

Thursday | September 24,2026

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM @ THE LEGACY CASTLE
POMPTON PLAINS, NJ

PURCHASE TICKET OR TABLE OF 8

SPONSOR OPPORTUNITIES

STAGE4CHANGE MISSION
To give our LESLIE'S WEEK Stage 4 MBC Honorees a voice in their diagnosis, treatment, and living results by increasing their understanding of the language in communicating with those who treat them in their MBC quest for longevity. This is an opportunity for attendees to gain an understanding of the unspoken frustrations of MBC patients.
STAGE4CHANGE VISION
To host a conference where LESLIE'S WEEK STAGE 4 MBC Honoree women and their husband caregivers are the presenters and whose audience, the Medical Community, Hospitals, Researchers, Pharmaceuticals, and others are the listeners. To produce a STAGE4CHANGE Live Stream that is available throughout the Medical and Pharmaceutical Communities.
Ticket Prices include a Continental Breakfast, a 10-star Buffet Lunch, Cash Bar, Break Time Snacks, Beverages, White Glove Service, and Free Parking
Complimentary Tickets for LESLIE’S WEEK Honoree MBC Women are available by email to sandra@lesliesweek.org
Best Western Plus Fairfield Executive Inn
216 US Highway 46, Fairfield, NJ 07004
Free Shuttle Service to The Legacy Castle
Nightly rate $135 + Tax
The Madison Hotel
1 Convent Road, Morristown, NJ 07960 Reservations 973-285-1800 Nightly Rate $TBD
Free Parking, Complementary Breakfast
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The Legacy Castle
141 Route 23 South, Pompton Plains, NJ 07444 (map)
The Legacy Castle is a truly unique, unparalleled setting to celebrate momentous occasions. The castle exudes an aura of classic elegance and the grandeur of a royal palace, reminiscent of mansions built during the gilded age of the late 19th century.

stage4change agenda

This year, we honor the unseen emotional, physical, financial, and medical forces that shape the daily lives of women living with metastatic breast cancer. Just as powerful currents move beneath the surface of the sea, our honorees navigate forces that are often invisible to the world yet demand extraordinary strength. CURRENTS OF COURAGE celebrates their resilience, their families’ steadfast support, and the scientific currents driving critical advances in MBC treatment.

Registration, Name Tags and Continental Breakfast
A gathering where lived experience meets research progress, where families find anchoring support, and where courage—in all its forms—is recognized, uplifted, and shared.
Welcome & Introductions
Champaign Toast to Celebrate STAGE4CHANGE, our Speakers, & our Guests , Sandra Gunn
THE CURRENT OF DISCOVERY: Innovations Changing the MBC Landscape.
KEYNOTE SPEAKER, Gissoo DeCotiis, Former Global Advocate, Daiichi Sankyo
What patients need that Science must hear. The patient voice directly informs research priorities.
LIVING INSIDE THE INVISIBLE CURRENT: The Emotional Reality of MBC
SPEAKER MICHELLE DEL’AQUILA, 2025 Honoree
Navigating unseen pain, energy budgeting, and identity shifts.
POWER IN THE UNDERFLOW: Finding Agency in a Life You Don’t Control
SPEAKER ASHLYN STEIN, 2025 Honoree
How women reclaim autonomy in a medicalized existence.
PERFORMANCE - LESLIE’S WEEK 2018 ALUM DAUGHTER
Kamryn Ward Sings
A Million Dreams - Sung by Hugh Jackman & Various Artists
11:10 TO 11:25 - CURRENTS BENEATH THE SURFACE: What Partners Carry and Rarely Say
HUSBAND SPEAKER ANDREW DENNIS, 2025 Honoree Husband - The caregiver’s emotional and invisible burdens
11:25 – 11:40 – THE STRENGTH TO STAY STEADY: Male Grief, Fear, and Identity in MBC
HUSBAND SPEAKER DUANE YOUNKIN, 2025 Honoree Husband - Honoring vulnerable experiences men rarely voice.
11:40 – 12:00 – WHEN THE CURRENT SHIFTS: Holding Steady in Changing Tides
HUSBAND SPEAKER COLLIN CARROLL, 2025 Honoree Husband - Examining how partners quietly balance intertwined roles of caregiver, advocate, emotional anchor and parent as their loved one’s needs evolve.
LAKEISHA WHIPPLE, a Southern Maryland Vocalist singing the 1988 Bette Midler song, “WIND BENEATH MY WINGS”
A time to nourish both body and spirit, fostering connections among attendees and speakers.
The Legacy Castle‘s reputation for 10-STAR SERVICE will be the Food experience of your lifetime. Just ask anyone who has attended our STAGE4CHANGE.
This is not just a PANEL. It is a shared Heartbeat!
MODERATOR, Christina McAmis, 2023 Honoree
PANELISTS:
Cara Bruzzi, Carebox Health, A healthcare technology company connecting MBC women to Clinical Trials.
Katrina Johnson, US Director Advocacy & Professional Relations, Pfizer
Joanne Ryan, PhD, RN - Medical Director US Breast Cancer, Pfizer
TBD Honoree Husband
TBD Honoree MBC Woman
This panel explores the unseen currents shaping the lives of women living with metastatic breast cancer, their families, and the scientific advances that bring Hope.
This is not about protocols - it’s about people, lived experience, and human resilience. Discussions focus on the interplay of scientific innovation, patient advocacy, and family support in shaping the future of MBC care. This is about the forces that move quietly beneath the surface.
LESLIE’S WEEK CHOIR - Celebrating the voices of strength and hope through song. Elliana and Grace Higley, 2022 Honoree daughters - Concert Master Coordinators, Song to be Announced
Honoree Kids Concludes the STAGE4CHANGE Afternoon Session. Our LW Kids are living the MBC life with their Mothers.
OUR LW KIDS CHOIR:
Alex & Edward Martinez, 2023 Honoree Sons - Maddie McAmis, 2023 Honoree Daughter- Kamryn & Kelsey Ward, 2018 Honoree Daughters - Brennen & Grace Higley, 2022 Honoree Children - Mia & Michael Bonaventura, 2022 Honoree Children - Hadley Taylor, 2022 Honoree Daughter - Olive, Hazel, & Paxton Shinn, 2025 Honoree children - Ethan Dennis, 2025 Honoree Son - Paxton Stein, 2025 Honoree Son - Allyson & Benjamin Donkers, 2025 Honoree Children - Gemma Spina, 2025 Honoree Daughter
BRACE YOURSELVES FOR THE MUSICAL EXPERIENCE OF A LIFTIME.
There will be a small packet of tissues at each table.
COCKTAILS AND APPETIZERS - An opportunity for reflection, connection, and informal conversations to close the day on a note of unity and compassion.