An Act of Pure Kindness

Daughter Supports Enloe to Honor Mother

Sofia Portillo is a kind, friendly and gracious 11 year old. Her character is a spitting image of her late mother.

“She’s an amazing kid,” said Mark Portillo, Sofia’s father. “She’s very outgoing, and she’s the first one to offer and help anyone in need. She gets that from her mom, and as a dad that makes me so grateful.”

Sofia held a fundraiser for her birthday in 2022 in honor of her mother, Ruth, who passed from breast cancer when Sofia was 7. In lieu of gifts, the Bidwell Junior High School sixth grader asked for small donations. Family and friends responded in droves, raising $500 to support cancer services at Enloe.

“This is possible because of my family and friends,” Sofia said. “Some of the people who were generous to give money didn’t even meet my mom.”

Sofia’s donation went toward the Enloe Compassion Fund — which assists patients with significant needs by helping with housing, groceries or transportation — as well as the Comprehensive Cancer Center Campaign in order to bring Enloe’s approximately 97,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility in Meriam Park to life.

Jolene Francis, Enloe’s Vice President of Philanthropy & Communications, met with Sofia and her father to accept the donation. She was immediately moved by the youngest Portillo’s poise.

“I just met a future community leader, and her name is Sofia Portillo. Her desire to preserve the memory of her mom by helping cancer patients is inspiring,” Francis said. “This young woman’s passion to improve her world will take her far, and we are grateful she chose to share her love of others with a gift to Enloe.”

A Resilient Spirit

Those who did meet Ruth, her husband said, knew a lifelong Chicoan who had a knack for making friends with everyone she met. The couple first met when working together at the Enloe Laboratory, and he soon found out firsthand how deeply she cared about those around her.

“She loved her hometown, and she did everything possible to shop local and support the community,” Portillo said. “Her two loves were her kids and her community.”

“And you … possibly,” Sofia added, smiling.

Ruth was diagnosed with breast cancer seven months after Sofia was born. She spent the next several years undergoing treatment while caring for Sofia and her two older brothers. Sofia remembers adding pink extensions to her mother’s hair when she didn’t have much left during chemotherapy. Most importantly, she remembers the resilient spirit her mother embodied, no matter the odds.

“She was very lively,” Sofia said. “She wanted to live in the moment and never wanted to take anything for granted.”

Three years after Ruth’s passing, Sofia and her father decided Sofia’s birthday would be an appropriate time to honor Ruth. It was something they talked about for some time, Portillo said.

“I decided I was going to do it for my mom,” Sofia said. “I thought I was going to get, like, 20 bucks. But people brought $50 or $100. It felt good because I knew it was going to help people.”

It’s not fair, Portillo said, to lose a mother at such a young age, forcing Sofia to grow up so much quicker than most children her age. But to see her channel such a heartbreaking loss into an act of pure kindness is a testament to Sofia’s generosity.

She gets it from her mother, he said, and he knows exactly how Ruth would feel about her daughter’s charity.

“Her mom is so proud of her, so proud,” Portillo said. “I know she’s looking down on her and smiling right now.”

Talk to Your Doctor

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society. Finding it early can give you the best chance of successful treatment.

Talk to your provider immediately if you notice changes in your chest, and let him or her know if you have a family history of breast cancer. It’s also important to get a mammogram regularly.

• If you’re 40-44, you can get screened every year.
• If you’re 45-54, you should get an exam every year.
• If you’re 55 or older, get a mammogram every other year unless your care team recommends annual examinations.

To schedule your mammogram, call Enloe Breast Imaging at 530-332-4350. A referral is not required.

Help Bring the Cancer Center to Life

The North State has the highest rates of cancer and mortality in the state. The top five counties in California for cancer diagnosis are Glenn, Shasta, Butte, Tehama and Yuba counties.

Butte County reported 476 cancer diagnoses per 100,000 residents in 2020. That’s about a 33% increase over the statewide average.

Enloe’s new Comprehensive Cancer Center will remedy the dire need to increase cancer care in the North State. Located at the corner of E. 20th Street and Bruce Road in Chico, construction will be underway in the first quarter of 2024. Learn more at www.enloe.org/campaign.