JAMES CITY COUNTY — There was good news this Friday: Victorious Images is here to stay.
On March 12, WYDaily reported that the store’s owner, Nancy Lewis, was going to permanently close up shop later this month in order to retire. For the original article, click here. But great news came when she let us know that there was a change of plans.
Since the publication of the WYDaily article, Nancy’s beloved store merged with a North Carolina business called, Survivor Friendly.
“God is very good. It was really down to the wire, because I was going to permanently close April 15,” said Nancy. “I’m so, so glad the store is able to stay open.”
Victorious Images, located off of Richmond Road, provides fitted post-operative garments and mastectomy bras for cancer patients. Nancy said that the store was the only place in the area that also offered compression sleeves, making it a convenient location for those battling cancer.
RELATED STORY: Victorious Images owner retires after 10 years serving cancer patients
Survivor Friendly has a mission that is very similar to Victorious Images.
Survivor Friendly, a Raleigh-based one-stop shop for cancer patients and “survivors with grace,” was founded by Jacqueline Cromity, a breast cancer survivor who has personal ties to others’ cancer battles. Her mother died from breast cancer when Jacqueline was only eight years old. In 2020, her father lost his own battle with cancer.
Jacqueline discovered Victorious Images after Nancy posted on a community network site called, Essentially Women. This is a member service organization (MSO) that specializes in providers catering to post-mastectomy patients and women’s health.
If Nancy’s business closed, then mastectomy patients in the Historic Triangle would have to travel to either Richmond or Newport News for their needs.
“How could I allow that to happen? I could not leave these survivors without a place to go to,” Jacqueline said in a phone interview on Wednesday. “When you have cancer, all you know is that you’re fighting for your life.”
Jacqueline drove up from Raleigh to visit Victorious Images, and said that she and Nancy hit it right off.
With this merger, Victorious Images will be able to offer more for its clients, including wigs as well as organic skin and nail products. The store will move across the street from its current location to 7151 Richmond Road.
Though this is a massive change for the 10-year-old business, Victorious Images will be keeping its name and Nancy will still be part of the store.
“I’ll be working as the site manager, so I’ll get to keep my hands on the store, but I’ll be part-time so if I want to travel or take some time off, I can,” she said.
In March, Nancy told WYDaily that her plans were to retire and travel around the country with her husband. Their first stop was going to be to visit their son in Colorado.
This new arrangement with Survivor Friendly not only allows Nancy to continue to serve the community, but will also give her the flexibility she was seeking.
The opening date for the new location is tentatively set for this June.
Victorious Images is currently located at 7191 Richmond Road, Suite E, and is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturdays by appointment only and closed on Sundays.
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