A Legacy of Action: How Bridgette Hempstead Built a Movement of Mutual Support

After receiving her first cancer diagnosis more than 20 years ago, Bridgette Hempstead turned hardship into a lifeline for others. As she navigated the health care system, she faced numerous systemic challenges to her cancer diagnosis and treatment. Determined to create a solution, she founded Cierra Sisters, a groundbreaking nonprofit that assists Black women navigating cancer. Beyond her advocacy in health care, Hempstead — or Ms. Bridgette, as many called her — was deeply committed to her community, serving as vice president of the South Seattle Emerald's board of directors and creating a network of mutual support that strengthened the South End.

Hempstead passed away on Dec. 12, 2024, but her legacy of action and advocacy for others lives on in the countless lives she touched and the lasting impact she made.

"I think we need to acknowledge that …, particularly for Black women, and that no one is coming to save us. Nobody's coming. So it is up to us not only to advocate for ourselves, but to advocate for our sisters," said writer, educator, and community organizer Reagan Jackson. "I think that's what Ms. Bridgette taught us, and that is what we need to carry forward."

Diagnosis to Determination: The Formation of Cierra Sisters

A longtime Skyway resident, Bridgette Hempstead experienced a life-changing moment when she heard the Lord tell her to get a mammogram. Her doctor, however, was dismissive, saying that at just 34 years old, with no family history of breast cancer, and because she was Black, she didn't need one. Hempstead was told to come back in 10 years, but knew she must persist. After advocating for herself, she persuaded the doctor to listen, and an appointment was scheduled.

That spiritual call to action and insistence on bodily autonomy saved her life. On her 35th birthday, Hempstead was diagnosed with breast cancer. This began her battle not only against cancer but against systemic barriers in health care, specifically for Black women facing cancer. Refusing to accept the status quo, she created an organization to support others. For more than two decades, Cierra Sisters has provided advocacy and resources to African American women living with breast cancer.

A Champion for Unheard Voices: Elevating Stories in South Seattle

Bridgette Hempstead's commitment to community extended beyond Cierra Sisters to include relationships with numerous nonprofits, organizations like the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, and people working to improve the lives of those overlooked or unheard.

In the early years of the South Seattle Emerald, she played a pivotal role in guiding the organization. Marilee Jolin, who served as the interim executive director, said Hempstead's "wisdom as a nonprofit leader" helped her learn to "stay true to the organization and true to the community it served."

Ms. Bridgette served as the board vice president at a time when the Emerald, only a few years old, was covering significant events such as the 2016 presidential election, anti-Trump student walkouts, and providing a platform for underrepresented voices to publish poems, visual art, and perspectives.

That service took shape in many ways, but according to Jolin one was "her commitment to relationship, whether that was within Cierra Sisters or how we at the Emerald related to other organizations, other nonprofits in our community, or even just other people in our community."

"It was second nature to her … to build a web — a family almost — of mutual support," says Jolin.

A Family of Support: Continuing to Weave a Strong South End

Bridgette Hempstead's legacy lives on in the bonds she built and strength she inspired within her community. Known for her determination, wisdom, and kindness, she showed what was possible, together.

Reflecting on how the community can continue to honor Ms. Bridgette's legacy, Jolin says, "I think the core of Cierra Sisters really reflected the core of Ms. Bridgette: coming together, unity in community, and that we all have something to contribute."

Jolin recalled a powerful lesson in humility she learned from Ms. Bridgette. After realizing that she had unintentionally spoken over Ms. Bridgette multiple times during a board meeting, she nervously called to apologize. "I don't remember the conversation in specific detail, but I just remember that by the end of the call, we were laughing," Jolin says. "It was maybe the first time that I'd experienced a true, complete apology met by a true, complete forgiveness, which led to restoration and depth of relationship. I return to it all the time for what apology, forgiveness, and restoration is supposed to look like."

The spirit Ms. Bridgette brought to her relationships led Seafair to dub her the "Empress of Early Detection, Sisterhood and Survivorship," celebrating her determination through two cancer diagnoses, against health care bias, and for numerous community members she uplifted.

Devin Chicras, a founding board member of the South Seattle Emerald, spoke on how Hempstead was able to use her strength of spirit to serve a higher purpose.

"Ms. Bridgette was tenacious and unstoppable — for her people, her causes, and her sense of justice. Her deep well of wisdom, warmth, humor, and trademark 'bossiness' (which she claimed she got from her mom) made her someone you'd follow directly into battle without a second thought," says Chicras. "The strength and bravery she brought to all challenges in life was paired with an undefeatable kindness and optimism that made you feel it was truly possible to move mountains."

Bridgette Hempstead's faith in community, relationships, and collective action remains a guiding force in Cierra Sisters, the South Seattle Emerald, and for the many she inspired.

"Don't let yourself be limited by others. Name your values out loud and fight for them. Everyone has something to contribute. Build community, share information, and offer a helping hand to those in need," says Chicras. "And to quote Ms Bridgette directly: 'Live your life to the fullest, and when it's time, go out with a bang.'"