Press Features
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Air Date: January 22nd, 2026
Podcast: The Uplifters
Episode 145: Starting a Nonprofit after 40
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Is there any better feeling than receiving hand-written love notes in the mail? Today’s guest, Dawn Veselka, built an entire movement around this moment. For 15 years, she’s watched her daughter Sadie navigate chronic illness and rare disease. Somewhere in that long journey of appointments and advocacy, Dawn discovered that most patients, families, and caregivers don’t only need a medical breakthrough, they also need to know someone sees them.
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Air Date: July 31st, 2025
Podcast: Chronically Christy
Episode 37: Cards2Warriors
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Cards2Warriors sends cards of encouragement and support to individuals battling long term illnesses and rare diseases. It sends them all over the world.
Set up by Dawn and Sadie after Sadie developed some long term illnesses at a young age, today we speak to Dawn about why they do it, how they do it, and how you can get involved………
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Air Date: April 22nd, 2025
Podcast: The Podcast by KevinMD
Episode: Spreading hope one card at a time for doctors' well-being
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Physician advocate and physical therapist Kim Downey, physician coach Erin Hurley, and patient advocate Dawn Veselka discuss their article, "Spreading hope one card at a time: How small acts of kindness can make a big difference for doctors." They highlight the emotional toll of medicine, noting a concerning shift in how physicians describe their work—from fulfilling to exhausting and demoralizing—contributing to burnout rates near 50 percent and high suicide rates. Kim, Erin, and Dawn champion the power of simple acts of kindness, like handwritten notes, to combat this, referencing Erin's personal experience receiving encouraging cards during medical school. They introduce the expansion of Dawn's Cards2Warriors Happy Mail program to include doctors, challenging listeners to write a note of appreciation by Doctors' Day (March 30) to refuel and rekindle hope in physicians.
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Air Date: February 25th, 2025
Podcast: Create Meaning in Medicine
Episode 74: The Impact of 'Magic in the Mail' on Medical Professionals
Join us in exploring the heartwarming world of Cards to Warriors with Dawn Veselka. In this episode, we will highlight the transformative power of these small gestures and the deep impact they have on the recipients' spirits. Tune in and discover how you can be part of this beautiful movement that extends gratitude and support across the healthcare community today.
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Air Date: September 15th, 2024
Podcast: My Spoonie Sisters
Season 4, Episode 3: Spreading Positivity with Cards 2 Warriors
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Have you ever wondered how a small act of kindness can make a colossal difference in someone's life? Join us for an uplifting conversation with Dawn, the inspiring founder of "Cards to Warriors," who transitioned from a radiation therapist to an advocate for patients and caregivers. Dawn shares her heartfelt journey and the touching story behind this incredible initiative that spreads joy and support through "Happy Mail" to those battling illness.
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Air Date: August 20th, 2024
Podcast: The Pickle Jar Podcast - Adrenal Insufficiency Podcast
Episode 223: Get Happy Mail with Me!!
Living with a chronic illness you know the unrelenting challenges that are faced. Feeling isolated. unseen, unheard, gaslit and physically and emotional exhausted. Find meaning in your journey with chronic illness with Cards2Warriors.
Air Date: October 24th, 2023
Podcast: The KORE Women Podcast
Season 5, Episode 277: Radiation Therapist, Entrepreneur, and Co-Founder of the Company ”Cards2Warriors” - Dawn Veselka
This week on the KORE Women podcast, Dr Summer Watson welcomes Dawn Veselka, who is a radiation therapist and mom to an amazing teen. She spent 12 years of her professional career treating cancer patients, including a year at the world-renowned MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. When her daughter became ill at age 3, life took a turn in a completely unexpected...​
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Air Date: July 2nd, 2024
Podcast: SpoonFull of Strength: A Podcast for People with Chronic Illness
Season 1, Episode 13: Supporting Chronic Illness Featuring Cards2Warriors
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Today, we talk about all the ways we can support someone with a chronic illness. And, we invited Dawn, from Cards2Warriors in to talk about her wonderful organization that sends cards to spoonies, caregivers, family members, or healthcare workers.
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Volume 17, Issue 1, Summer/Fall 2024
Cystinosis Research Network
Newsletter: The Cystinosis Advocate
A Heartfelt Collaboration: Cards2Warriors and Cystinosis Warrior Steve
By Dawn Veselka, co-founder Cards2Warriors, located on page 19