BRECKENRIDGE — A trip to the mountains can be just the ticket to forgetting the daily grind and bonding with family.

But for many cancer patients and their loved ones, such an escape is out of the question.

Domus Pacis Family Respite, a nonprofit organization in Breckenridge, aims to make it a reality — even for those financially and physically burdened.

Linda C. Barbre has had brain cancer for 13 years. Diagnosed at 19, she was given 2 to 3 years to live.

She is unable to walk and doesn’t get out of her parents’ home in Severance very often, unless friends and family take her somewhere. She has a scooter but can’t use it in rain or snow.

The week last September that she and her family spent at a Riverbend penthouse in Breckenridge was “awesome,” she said.

“It was the first time we have gotten together in a long time,” she said.

Barbre’s parents are divorced, but both came with their spouses, as well as her two brothers and their families. They played board games, relaxed in hot tubs, cooked food and even had a family portrait taken by a professional.

“I got to spend some time with my family that I wouldn’t have gotten to if it wasn’t for that,” she said, “because everybody’s real busy — and it was really nice.”

Duck White-Petteruti and her husband, Vince, began Domus Pacis — or “house of peace,” in Latin — this summer after several years of preparation.

They’ve now provided respite to eight cancer-affected families, and aim to accommodate 30 families in 2009.

“It’s just so spiritual, so relaxing,” White-Petteruti said. “And it’s major — major for these families.”

The families are referred through doctors and hospitals, which helps to insure they won’t have too many issues with the elevation. Before they set foot in Summit County, the guests will have spent as many as 30 hours on the phone with Duck.

“They want that relationship,” she said, to let them know they’re “not alone when they get here.”

Volunteers are essential to the program, whether they’re offering large homes or a pan of brownies. White-Petteruti said she’s found most of them through friends with whom she practices water aerobics, but the organization can certainly use more.

About 10 properties have been donated since Domus Pacis began. Whether one bedroom or five, any sort of vacant home or condominium is welcome.

White-Petteruti said a variety of donations, ranging from bicycle rentals to fishing gear, could be put to good use.

“It’s kind of endless what we could be doing,” she said, adding that tickets to local children’s plays have been given.

The organization runs off grants and donations, and long-term plans include expansion to other resort communities, perhaps in Eagle County and even non-mountain communities.

“Not everybody can come to the mountains,” White-Petteruti said.

And though cancer is presently the primary illness accommodated, the mission is to ultimately help people affected by a variety of traumatic illnesses.

She said the experience truly brings peace and joy to peoples’ lives, as many come here inundated with stress.

“Most of the families, this is their first time to Summit County. They’re just awed by it,” she said.

The trip may have been extra special to Barbre, who said her ependymoma, essentially tumors affecting the central nervous system, has developed into the final stages.

At 32, she continues to visit a children’s hospital, for the disease typically affects adolescents.

Linda Tafolla, Barbre’s mother, said the experience in Breckenridge was unforgettable.

“We were up to midnight playing silly games and things like that,” she said. “I think (Barbre) had more fun than I’ve seen her have in a long time.”

Tafolla said Barbre went to the lake for fishing with her father and brother.

The penthouse elevator provided easy access for her, and the well-stocked kitchen made for some nice family meals.

It was good to get away from the hospitals and doctors for a while, Tafolla said. And such an opportunity for an adult was really something special. Organizations like Make-A-Wish Foundation only grant wishes for kids.

“A lot of time people concentrate on children and their cancer, and what their wishes are, and stuff like that,” she said, “and sometimes adults get kind of ... put by the wayside.”

Back in Severance, Barbre continues spending much of her time with her dogs and working on abstract oil paintings. She picked up the craft about 12 years ago, to keep busy since her chemotherapy began.

Tafolla said Barbre’s brothers still talk about the great time they had in the mountains.

“It was probably something she’ll never forget — or the rest of us, for that matter,” she said.

To donate housing, time, supplies or services, contact Domus Pacis at (970) 547-4745 or visit their website at www.domuspacis.org.



Robert Allen can be contacted

at (970) 668-4628 or rallen@summitdaily.com.