Pods of Hope

When Margaret Kobylus’s daughter Angela was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma in 1992 it turned their whole world upside down.  Angela had started to complain of leg pain earlier in the year and after many trips to doctors with no real diagnosis, other than growing pains, Margaret took Angela to see her Orthopedic doctor.  From there everything happened pretty quickly, the next day Margaret and Angela found themselves on the way to see oncologists in Seattle where they would learn Angela’s diagnosis.

As a single mom Margaret found comfort in the support she received from family, friends, her work and a group called the Candlelighters (the ACCOIN of today).  She found comfort in knowing other families struggling through a Childhood diagnosis just as she was, comfort in not feeling so alone in this tumultuous fight.

Angela’s ability to stay positive and focus on things like singing and journaling brought strength not only to Angela but to everyone who came in contact with her.  Her favorite thing to say to people was to “take one day at a time”.  Margaret recalls how amazed she was at her daughters strength and wisdom through out her long 5 year battle with cancer and feels very lucky to have had such a close relationship with her.

Sadly, Angela passed away at the age of 20 1/2, five years after her diagnosis.  Although she had reached remission and things looked to be heading in the right direction, the cancer came back and this time it had spread to her other leg, into her back and throughout her body.

Margaret did not walk away from the Childhood Cancer world after Angela’s death in 1997, instead she decided stay involved with the Candelighters (now ACCOIN) and has served on the board in one capacity or another ever since.  We are so grateful for her and her desire to continue to help families through this fight.

Emily Garcia is a vibrant, giving, thoughtful young woman whose life was partially shaped by the Nueroblastoma diagnosis her younger sister faced at the very young age of 7 months.  Emily’s experiences through that journey and through the eventual loss of her sister Pricila when Pricila was just 15 months old has given Emily a unique perspective on her own life and the goals she sets for herself.  The drive and passion she has to make sure she is living her own life to the fullest knowing that her sister Pricila was not afforded the same opportunity, is a remarkable outlook for a teenager.

Emily has an old soul, her experiences have made her perspective much wider than most 18 year olds. Her want to give back and help families going through the experiences her family went through with Pricila’s cancer diagnosis is apparent.

When asked how Pricila’s cancer diagnosis and the eventual loss of her sister has impacted her life Emily said ” It makes me realize life is beautiful and to live life to the fullest” and to “strive for everything”.

I feel very lucky to have had the opportunity to meet Emily and I am confident that she will be able to handle whatever life throws at her.

Being grateful….truly a much more complex topic than one would think.  Our first round table discussion brings up some very valid points about gratitude and being grateful.  Everyone has struggles, everyone has days where being grateful is the last thing on their mind.  Can you shift your attitude in the moments when life is dealing you a bad hand? Can you think of a time in your life where you were able to take yourself from a place of sadness and despair and focus on the things you are grateful for?

Of course we are all human and being grateful at all times is not a possibility, but reminding yourself each day of what you do have to be grateful for and focusing on the positive in your life can be a real asset emotionally, physically, and spiritually.

A beautiful poem by an unknown author can sum up what many of us were feeling in our discussion. Knowing that life is full of struggles and using those struggles to amplify the joys in our lives.

 

Jennifer

Wigen’s oldest son Josh was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma at the tender age

of ten.  Josh had already witnessed what

cancer can do to a person when his grandfather was diagnosed with brain cancer

just before Josh’s diagnosis.  Being a 10

year old who is aware of what cancer is and old enough to understand what some

of the implications are makes for a difficult journey.  On top of Josh’s awareness of Cancer and

fears related to it he also had an extreme fear of needles and getting shots or

blood drawn.  If you have any knowledge

of Cancer treatment you know that needles, shots, and blood draws are a must

and done frequently.  Josh’s anxiety was

amplified and made his journey that much more difficult.

When

speaking to Jen about the trials and tribulations of Josh’s cancer treatment I

asked her what was the most difficult part for her.  She let me know that being away from her kids

Abbey and Matt during Josh’s stay at Seattle Children’s for radiation was the

most excruciating.  She felt as though

she was somehow failing them, even though they spoke daily, being away from

them and not being able to support them in the everyday happenings in their

lives makes her emotional still to this day. 

I think many

of us parents go through this feeling of not being able to be there for our

kids without cancer while our lives become dedicated to doing everything

possible to ensure the health and success of the child with cancer.  Although in everyone’s eyes you are doing all

you can, the Mom guilt overrides any logical rational and we end up feeling inadequate

at times.  Knowing you are not alone in

this journey and that Mom’s and Dad’s out there are experiencing those same

feelings can help to ease some of that struggle.

When asked

if she had anything to share with families just starting out in the Childhood

Cancer life Jen expressed that “having a child with cancer humbles you” and you

need to allow people to help.  Being a

person that doesn’t like to burden anyone with her struggles realizing that

accepting help from others is necessary and allowing others to experience the

joy of giving is also a gift.

Josh is out

of treatment and doing fantastic.  He is

playing football and flourishing in his academics.  Of all of Josh’s accomplishments one of Jen’s

greatest sense of pride comes from Josh overcoming his extreme fear of

needles.   Jen said “I was more proud of him for that

than probably any “A” he may get or any accolades from doing any sport that he

does.”  We are all proud of Josh and all

his has overcome and we will all rooting for him and the whole Wigen family as

they continue on their path post cancer treatment.

There is something truly special about people who choose to walk down the Childhood Cancer path without having a member of their own family with the diagnosis.   Savannah is one of those very special people who brings comfort to Childhood Cancer families.

Savannah is a dedicated member of the ACCOIN staff, who brings her talents to the table.  She is currently in school to become a Spanish teacher and has traveled and worked in Peru giving her a unique perspective of real life struggles.

We all know that Savannah will be successful no matter what life throws at her and are happy that she has chosen to devote so much of her time helping Childhood Cancer Families.

To learn more about ACCOIN and what we do to help families going through a Childhood Cancer diagnosis check out our website at https://wwwlacco.org/inlandnw/

Born and raised in Spokane, Washington, Jennifer Anderson is a mom of four sweet kids; Colton, Winston, Reese and Childhood Cancer warrior Abram.  After Abram couldn’t rebound from a cold that had gone throughout the household Jennifer and her husband decided that they needed to take him in to see the pediatrician.  After some alarming blood work, Abram was then diagnosed with ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia).

Managing four children one of whom has Cancer is challenging to say the least.  Jennifer deals with it by taking life one day at a time.  With so many siblings with differing ages it makes juggling difficult.  Jennifer takes on a view that each child needs to be handled differently.  Often siblings will feel like the child with cancer is being favored and feel jealous of the Cancer child.  Helping the kids to understand that it is not all fun can be difficult and taking the time to continually have those conversations with the siblings is important and helpful.  Making sure that all the kids know that they are loved and feel special. Whatever Jennifer is doing it seems to be working she has a very sweet family and we will be rooting for them all through this trying time.

Lesley Hilts and her son Mateo have been through a great deal together.  Their journey together started in a beautiful way with Lesley journeying to Guatemala to adopt Mateo.

The adoption process for Lesley was a long and arduous one. The gratifying journey finally ended with Lesley taking her son Mateo home at 11 months old.  It was 11 long months from start of adoption to completion.

Life was going on as planned with the happy little family as they were planning a big trip to visit Lesley’s dad in Niagara Falls and getting ready to celebrate Mateo’s Gotcha day (the day Mateo’s adoption was finally complete) when Mateo began not feeling well.  After taking Mateo (age 9 at this point) to an urgent care she was instructed to take him to Sacred Heart Children’s if she was not happy with the way Mateo was feeling in the next couple of days. When Mateo was still not feeling well she took him to Sacred Heart as instructed where she would hear those life altering words for the first time “Your son has Cancer”.

The struggle to raise a child during cancer treatment can be unbearable at times, add to that being a single mom and the obstacle becomes that much more challenging. As the treatment process winds down for Mateo and his mom, new fears and anxiety come into play.  The fear of not knowing what to expect and not being as connected to the hospital, this safe place that has become extended family.  After all there is comfort in getting blood draws regularly and even safety in giving your child the chemo that has kept his cancer at bay. When the day arrives that this is no longer the order of things it can be downright frightening.  We are all here for this amazing duo as Mateo begins his journey into survivorship and will be rooting for them in all life’s challenges.

If you would like to learn more about ACCOIN and what we do for families going through a Childhood Cancer diagnosis go to our website at https://www.acco.org/inlandnw/

 

Jack and Kerinsa Sanborn of Wildgrain Woodworking have been partners with ACCOIN for the past few years. They have contributed beautiful pieces of furniture, created by Jack, to our Light the Way dinner auction bringing in high bids and excitement to the event.

 

It is not only the generous donations of the furniture pieces that makes this relationship a great one, it is the dedicated support that ACCOIN receives from this amazing family who have now become passionate about helping Childhood Cancer families.

 

This past year Jack and Kerinsa decided to be a part of our Adopt a Family program and purchase gifts for a Childhood Cancer family during the holidays.  The response from the Sanborn’s was an enthusiastic one as they got the whole family involved, brothers, sisters, parents and of course their own kids lovingly shopped for a deserving family.  They shared with us that the experience was a very fulfilling one for them and their whole family is ready to be a part of it again this year.

 

Along with the amazingly giving hearts of Jack and Kerinsa Sanborn we now have Jack’s father-in law (Kerinsa’s father) Alan Jennings supporting ACCOIN. Alan has decided that whatever profits he makes from the sale of the woodworking items he creates will go directly to ACCOIN.  The love and compassion of this family is truly beautiful. Who could have imagined that a cold call, made by Executive Director Sarah Jane Brown to a local business, looking for donated items to our auction could become the amazing success and partnership that it has become.   We are continuously grateful to Wildgrain Woodworking and the entire Sanborn family for their beautiful hearts and dedication to helping local Childhood Cancer families.

Please check out Jack’s woodworking works of art at http://wildgrainwoodworking.com/website/

To learn more about ACCOIN and what we do to help families going through a Childhood Cancer diagnosis check out our website at https://www.acco.org/inlandnw/ 

 

Calendar of Event for September

Light up the Stacks on September 6th at the Steamplant grille

Gregory Hall Memorial 5k September 8th

Brain Freeze Ice “Hearts of Gold” Ice cream on sale all September

Candle Light Vigil September 18th

Hope is Golden Luncheon September 25th

Sweeto Burrito promotion September 27th

Schwan’s Cares promotion https://www.schwans-cares.com/campaigns/41411-fighting-childhood-cancer-fund

When a child is given a diagnosis with hard to hear statistics of 10% survival rate the Hope that you hang onto is often hard to muster.  Somehow parents facing those statistics do find a way to believe that their child will be the one to beat the odds.

It is amazing  how a Childhood Cancer diagnosis attaches itself to you forever.  Even after 12 years of Cruz being Cancer Free, Kiersten’s recollection of the diagnosis made it as fresh as if it were yesterday.  There is no time limit on those feelings and having the support of others that have been down the Childhood Cancer road can truly be lifesaving.

Kiersten’s Childhood Cancer story is filled with so much Hope and will most certainly help others families struggling with not only Childhood Cancer but also with a difficult hard to treat cancer.

To learn more about ACCOIN and what we do to help families going through a Childhood Cancer diagnosis check out our website at https://www.acco.org/inlandnw/