Pink Arrow Pride 2008 was the brainchild of Lowell’s football coach, Mr. Noel Dean. A football game was played, in rare pink jerseys, the sound of a thousand donated pink thunder-sticks was in the air, and the stadium was virtually a sea of pink. Through the work of numerous dedicated volunteers and the support of the community, The Pink Arrow Pride raised $93,000 for charities.
My article was published today in the Lowell Ledger along with a snapshot of me in 1992...I know, the hair! Below is the text for those of you who do not get the Ledger and have asked if I would post on my blog.
I am still continuing to fight! Yesterday I finished my last round of chemo before my liver resection which will take place September 8th. I have been told that surgery could last up to 8 hours because of the placement of one of my tumors. It is located in the caudate lobe between two main arteries. Unfortunatly this is the first day of school for the girls but they are showing unbelievable strength and I trust that God has a hand in that. I will then go back into chemo for another 6 rounds and as far as I am concerned move forward as a colon cancer survivor!
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It will be 24 years ago this fall that I would be on the
sidelines at Birch Field cheering on the Lowell Red Arrow varsity football
team. As we all know, Lowell Football
didn’t have the hype it does today but one thing was for sure, the entire
Lowell community consistently showed up to pack the stands every Friday
night. Whether the team had a winning or
a losing season, the stands were always full.
Being a cheerleader for a community like this will always hold a special
place for me. Even though I would eventually move away from this community, I
still consider Lowell my home.
On March 10th of this year my life would
dramatically change and I would embark on a journey that has become both a
blessing and a curse. I was diagnosed
with Stage IV colon cancer with metastases to my liver.
Last fall I had been struggling with a somewhat irritating
upset stomach which I just chalked up to being a busy mom in the heat of my
busy season at work. After a visit to my primary care physician it was
highly likely I would end up with my gallbladder out. The next day I would go in for an ultrasound
but nothing was found. My PCP ordered a
nuclear scan to get a clearer picture and that too came back normal. At this point I just told myself it was
probably in my head and eventually the upset stomach would subside. I also was experiencing some blood in my
stool but that had been happening for quite a few years and was told it was
internal hemorrhoids, which are very common for us women over 40.
It would be another month before I realized that things were
just not getting better. The upset
stomachs were daily and becoming somewhat debilitating and the blood in my
stool was increasing. My PCP suggested a
referral to a Gastroenterologist and thought a colonoscopy should be
ordered. I met with the gastro doctor
and he didn’t seem to be too worried but thought a colonoscopy might at least
give us some answers.
I would wake up from the colonoscopy to my worst
nightmare. All I heard the doctor say
was large tumor and colon cancer.
Wait! What? Colon cancer?
I am only 41 years old and have no family history. This can’t be! Unfortunately the photo of my colon put in
front of me would validate what he was saying.
It didn’t look normal at all. He said the mass had likely been growing
for ten years and would have started as a small polyp. The next week would be a complete blur. Telling family and friends, going to and from
the hospital for scans and blood work ups became overwhelming very
quickly. The initial colonoscopy
indicated I just had colon cancer, a scan later that week would reveal four
tumors on my liver. Stage IV! It all happened so quickly.
The next month we would be inundated with cards, meals and
many well wishes. I am still in awe of
the blessings we have received the last four months. One of the most significant gifts was a card
I received with the return address ‘Pink Arrow Pride’, it was a beautiful card
written by Teresa Beachum extending a monetary gift from the Lowell community. Until this point I had tried not to get very
emotional when opening cards but this one got me. We have supported Pink Arrow as a family in
the past but never would I have imagined being a recipient. Even though we moved from away from Lowell it
was apparent that this community still takes care of their own.
The last four months have been quite the journey. To date, I have undergone six rounds of
chemotherapy and a colon resection to remove my tumor. The chemotherapy (as much as I hate it) is
doing its job and shrinking the tumors in my liver. I am scheduled for my liver resection this
fall which will remove anywhere from a half to a third of my liver, followed by
more chemo. I am very positive about my
prognosis and look forward to life as a survivor of colorectal cancer. PLEASE, if you are over 50 and have not had a
colonoscopy, use my story as a reason to place the call and schedule one.
It was an honor to cheer at Lowell for my Red Arrows but it
is even more of an honor to be cheered on by a community team that offers such
profound support in so many ways. Thank
you for ‘packing’ the stands for me. Proud
to be a Red Arrow – always!
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