2025 ZERO Support Group Leader & MENtor Training

Speaker: Zaneta Taylor

Description: 

This session focuses on emphasizing the vital role of volunteers. It will also discuss the power of storytelling, encouraging volunteers to share their experiences to inspire others. Through interactive activities and peer sharing, volunteers will strengthen their purpose and storytelling skills, ultimately enhancing their impact on the community they serve.

Participants will:

• Reflect on and share their personal motivations for volunteering.
• Understand the key roles and responsibilities of Support Group Leaders (SGLs) and MENtors.
• Practice storytelling techniques to inspire and engage others.
• Create their own 1 minute volunteer stories to share
• Strengthen their sense of purpose and enhance their impact on the community.

Speaker: Perfeqta - La Tesha Byrd

Description:
This session will give leaders a practical “playbook” of tools, mindsets, and strategies to strengthen belonging in their meetings. It’s designed to help peer leaders move from simply hosting meetings to truly building community — and gives them clear moves they can use right away.

Participants will:

• Get a simple playbook of strategies to build connection, belonging, and trust.
• Practice applying inclusive leadership to real-world challenges, and strategies to strengthen belonging in their meetings.
• Create their own personal leadership plan to make every meeting a little more impactful.
• Learn to host meetings that truly build a sense of community and trust.

Speaker - Lauren Walch - Cancer Support Community

Presentation Description:

Facilitating a support group or mentoring one-on-one can be deeply rewarding — but not every conversation or meeting goes as planned. Unexpected challenges like anger, disengagement, dominating personalities, or inconsistent attendance can leave mentors feeling overwhelmed or unsure of what to do next.

This practical, interactive session will equip peer support volunteers with simple, effective tools to handle difficult moments confidently and compassionately. Whether you're facing conflict, silence, or disruptions, you'll walk away feeling more prepared — and more connected to your role as a steady, supportive guide for men navigating prostate cancer.

 Learning Objectives:

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

• Recognize common "sideways moments" and understand the underlying causes.
• Use specific de-escalation and redirection techniques during difficult conversations.
• Manage group dynamics to ensure balanced participation and emotional safety.
• Maintain personal boundaries while staying empathetic and supportive.
• Develop personal action plans for handling unexpected situations with calm and professionalism.

​Speakers: Moderator, Dr. Alicia Morgans, Dr. Mack Roach, Dr. Chuck Ryan, Dr. Stacy Loeb 

Presentation Description:  

This dynamic panel brings together experts from across the prostate cancer treatment landscape to discuss emerging therapies,​ and personalized medicine approaches​. Panelists will share insights on recent advances in treatment options, strategies for improving quality of life during and after treatment, and the evolving role of patient advocacy in treatment decisions. The session will highlight how multidisciplinary collaboration is reshaping prostate cancer care and empowering patients to become active participants in their treatment journey.

Participants will:

• Gain insights into cutting-edge prostate cancer treatments and clinical advances
• Learn about personalized medicine approaches and how treatment plans are becoming more individualized
• Understand the importance of multidisciplinary care teams in prostate cancer management
• Discover strategies for addressing quality of life concerns during and after treatment
• Explore how patient advocacy is influencing treatment protocols and research priorities
• Learn how to effectively communicate treatment options and considerations to support group members

Speaker: Dr. Alicia Newsome

Session Description: Leadership in the prostate cancer space requires deep compassion and emotional grit—but without physical resilience, burnout is inevitable. In this powerful and personal session, Dr. Alicia Newsome—functional medicine practitioner, bestselling author, and advocate for sustainable health—delivers a wake-up call to those who lead and serve tirelessly.

Drawing from lived experience and the science of functional wellness, Dr. Newsome unpacks how unaddressed stress, hormone imbalances, and “high-functioning burnout” quietly erode focus, energy, and wellbeing. Participants will explore a grounded, achievable path to reclaiming vitality—so they can lead and live from a place of alignment, not depletion.

Participants Will:

• Recognize the early physical and emotional signs of leadership burnout
• Implement small, high-impact daily actions to protect health while supporting others
• Understand the hormone-health connection and why it matters for long-term resilience
• Apply strategies to detox stress, restore energy, and reconnect with purpose

Speakers: Lisa Hall, Steph Johnson & Tina Rosenbaum

Session Description: In today’s complex healthcare landscape, effective marketing is more than just promotion—it’s a vital tool for advancing awareness, inclusion, and measurable impact. This energizing and practical session is designed to help support group leaders and advocates harness the power of purpose-driven marketing to grow their reach, engage underserved communities, and address disparities in prostate cancer support.
 

Speakers Lisa Hall, Steph Johnson and Tina Rosenbaum will guide participants through real-world examples, interactive exercises, and peer-to-peer learning. The session will explore how understanding your audience—starting with their needs, barriers, and motivations—is the first step toward developing intentional, effective outreach strategies that meet people where they are. You'll learn how to establish engagement baselines, track progress, and build trust through marketing that is rooted in authenticity, equity, and empathy.
Participants will: 

• Learn how to develop and apply purpose-driven marketing strategies to grow support group engagement.
• Explore how to collaborate with community partners to expand your network and build trust.
• Gain actionable tools for advancing health equity through inclusive support group outreach and recruitment.