Growing Something Bigger Than Ourselves

 

When Save Your Skin Foundation first connected with marketing and communications leader Karran Finlay in 2009, the organization was very different from the national charity it is today.

 

At the time, Save Your Skin was still a small, grassroots organization based in North Vancouver, BC, powered by passion, community, and a determination to make a difference for melanoma patients across Canada. It was beginning to find its voice, and Karran was brought on to help the organization think bigger.

 

From comprehensive media outreach and public relations efforts to high-profile fundraising and awareness initiatives, Karran helped advance Save Your Skin’s visibility during a pivotal moment in its history. 

 

One standout memory was a celebrity breakfast event in Vancouver in 2011, where recognizable Canadian personalities, including Karen Cliche, Gina Holden, Jill Barber, and Grant Lawrence, came together to support the cause and shine a spotlight on melanoma awareness.

 

“It was an exciting time for the Foundation,” Karran recalls. “There was a common purpose we all felt. Everyone was there for the same reason.”

 

At the centre of it all was Save Your Skin’s passionate leader and melanoma survivor, Kathy Barnard.

 

As Save Your Skin expanded beyond its local beginnings, Karran’s work helped strengthen the organization’s presence and reach, supporting its evolution into a connected, nationally recognized voice for melanoma and skin cancer patients across Canada.

 

“It was clear that our efforts were saving lives. . Everything we did, we did in the patient’s best interest,” Karran reflects. “Every dollar raised went directly to life-saving efforts. . And we all felt honoured to be a part of it.”

 

But like so many people connected to the Save Your Skin community, Karran says the impact was never one-sided.

 

“Kathy was and is a wealth of knowledge,” Karran says. “She became such a good friend. She gave my boys their first baseball mitts (being a pro baseball player herself), and their first sun-safe swimsuits.”

 

Working with the Foundation meant contributing to something meaningful while also sharing in the passion, resilience, and stories of others in the melanoma community. That spirit of shared purpose has remained constant over the years, even as the organization has grown into a national leader in patient support, advocacy, awareness, and education.

 

Through it all, one thing continues to stand out for Karran: community.

 

“Community is sometimes the only thing that keeps you going.  The Foundation provided the hope and support that helped hundreds of patients to feel a part of something - to keep living and moving forward.”

 

For patients, families, and supporters, Save Your Skin has always been about more than awareness. It has been about creating hope.

Looking back, Karran doesn’t just see an organization that grew. She sees a community that stayed true to its purpose: saving lives, supporting patients, and bringing people together.

 

And 20 years later, that connection remains strong.

 

Today, Karran continues to support Save Your Skin as a valued member of its Board of Directors, a testament to the relationships and impact that have defined the organization for the past 20 years.

 

Karran now resides in Edmonton, AB and is a Principal and Senior Strategist at ASK Communications.