A LIFE OF SERVICE
A Life Devoted to Service: Ann Favreau's Journey Through Leadership, Healing, and Inspiration
INFLUENTIAL WOMEN ARTICLE
ANN FAVREAU | APRIL 2026
My life can be defined by the word service. I have been a wife, mother, teacher, and cancer survivor. I am a writer, poet, speaker, facilitator, volunteer, and soul sister.
I have been a member of the Lions Club for over 45 years. In that capacity, I coordinated all volunteers at their monthly vision and hearing clinic. I initiated a program to provide reading glasses for people experiencing homelessness.
In 1988, a diagnosis of colorectal cancer led to a permanent colostomy. I joined a local support group, became its president, then a regional coordinator, and progressed through leadership roles in the national United Ostomy Association, ultimately serving as its president in 2002. After that, I became Secretary of the International Ostomy Association for six years, and later stepped into leadership roles with Friends of Ostomates Worldwide-USA, which sends donated ostomy supplies free of charge to individuals in need in 109 countries outside the United States. I have served as both Vice President and President, and I currently serve again as Vice President.
To provide information, inspiration, and resources, I wrote and published It’s Okay To Have An Ostomy, which has been read by people all over the world. My cancer journey—from diagnosis to national and international leadership—was also captured in Cancer to Caring.
My faith is central to my life. I have served as a lector in the Catholic Church for 50 years. I belong to Catholic women’s groups and regularly make presentations to civic and community groups, using my poetry and stories to entertain, encourage, and inspire. I am also a member of a local writers’ group and have served as its president three times. In my current role as president, I have initiated new programs and helped grow membership.
My husband’s diagnosis of vascular dementia in 2021 led me into a new caregiving journey. Writing poetry about the condition, his experience, and my own has been deeply cathartic. I published The Dementia Spiral and Life Under Construction: A Caregiver’s Journey Through Dementia. This work received a full-page review in the March 2026 issue of Alzheimer’s Today magazine. Through my writing, speaking, and connections with others, I believe I have made a positive difference in the lives of many.
My advice to other women is to be lifelong learners, risk-takers, and soul sisters. Surround yourself with supportive women. Reframe challenges with a positive perspective. Fill your life with art, music, and words—and do not be afraid to say “yes.”
