Sometimes love and kindness can act as very powerful medicines.

For one Naples cancer patient, that became abundantly clear when she arrived back at her Golden Gate Estates home in early April after a 36-day hospital stay recovering from five different surgeries.

While Estella Medina was in the hospital this winter, the Cancer Alliance Network sprang into action to give her home a “refresh,” thanks to the Paint It Forward program started by Naples painting company franchise That 1 Painter.

During Medina’s hospitalization, the Cancer Alliance Network’s development director, Michelle Ciuffetelli, worked with Wayne Rodriguez, operations manager of That 1 Painter in Naples, on the project that started out as simply repainting the interior of her home. But the project grew as Rodriguez and Ciuffetelli realized there was an opportunity to help Medina with other needs around the house, including living room and bedroom furniture, bedding and a washer and dryer.

Ciuffetelli put the word out through CAN’s network of partners and vendors who regularly work with the organization to help improve the lives of patients fighting cancer. Before long, more than 20 other vendors and partners had volunteered services, products or gift cards to help spruce up Medina’s home before she was discharged from the hospital.

Each year, Rodriguez said, That 1 Painter franchises pick a Paint It Forward project to benefit a local community member in need of help.

“It’s a big part of our company,” Rodriguez said during an interview in early April at Medina’s home. “It’s a corporate franchise, and every year they pick a project—and we like to do it for a deserving person, whether it’s a veteran, a cancer patient, whatever it might be. We’re a new franchise in the Naples area and we didn’t want to wait to give back. I raised three boys in Naples and they all came out great … And to me, that’s a community that helped raise these boys and I wanted to give back. And thanks to That 1 Painter, we’re able to give back.”

Rodriguez and Ciuffetelli connected at a networking event late last year and started comparing notes on CAN clients whose homes were in need of an interior paint job. CAN recommended Medina—who was employed full-time and has not been able to work since her cancer diagnosis—and Rodriguez and his crew got to work.

Medina’s home now features fresh paint in soothing colors from off-white in the living room to peach in the kitchen to a vibrant lime green in the bathroom. Medina, with translation help from Rodriguez, said she was surprised and a bit overwhelmed when she arrived home from the hospital to find her home, where she has lived since 2009, transformed.

She said she wasn’t expecting anything except the painting, so the rest of the enhancements were a complete surprise. “We kept it a secret,” Rodriguez said, “so she was very surprised. She’s very grateful and says it makes her feel better; she says things like this revitalize you and give you energy, give you faith, give you hope.”

Her washing machine had broken, so the new washer and dryer were a big relief, Ciuffetelli said. And another of the surprises was especially welcome for Medina, a cat lover who takes care of 11 outside cats who make their home in her yard. For the Love of Cats, a nonprofit cat rescue organization in Naples, trapped the cats, spayed or neutered them and returned them home.

Ciuffetelli said that as word spread about the project, she found more and more community members who wanted to be part of it.

“It started with a few, and then as I was out meeting people and sharing the story, people were like, ‘Well, I want to be a part of that. How can I give?’ ” Ciuffetelli said during the interview at Medina’s home. “It’s just the community coming together and it’s the generosity of living in a beautiful community that gets it: If we all do a little, it comes together to really benefit one individual a lot.”

In addition to That 1 Painter and For the Love of Cats, other vendors, companies or individuals contributing to the project to welcome Medina back to her home included Keller Williams Luxury, Jason’s Deli, Frantz Marketing Solutions, Gulfshore Life, Naples Luxury Imports, Kendra Scott, Jesi Crane of Northwestern Mutual, Superior Cleaning Services of SWFL LLC, Lark Curated, L-Space, PuroClean, Annette Masse of Aflac, Rob Frink, Michael McCarthy, O’s Hauling & Maintenance LLC, Healix and Luxure Lifestyle.

Cancer Alliance Network provides resources including financial aid, nutrition programs and support groups to individuals and families dealing with cancer and its effects. Additional information on donation and volunteer opportunities can be found at canceralliancenetwork.org or by calling 239.643.HOPE.