Determined to eliminate cancer.
Friday, July 27, 2012
By: Virginia Tingley

Having a year filled with family members and friends having cancer and losing our beloved sister Lori to lung cancer.

Our story begins with learning our youngest sister had lung cancer, then my husband having prostate cancer, followed by a friend and neighbor having bladder & prostate cancer, a cousin has breast cancer and my oldest sister had breast cancer. We were wondering in our family - why has this happened to us? Then you start paying more attention to the fact that people all around us were being struck with this terrible thing. We all think that if we pray hard enough that everyone will come out of this cancer free. All of our loved ones had surgery, is that going to get rid of this terrible disease. We pray some more, some have to have chemotherapy, is that going to get rid of this cancer. Then for some it is a bout of radiation, will that do it. For most they are dealing with the waiting to know if all of this has gotten rid of the dreaded cancer, or they are on a pill for the next 5 years. Then the unthinkable happens, the youngest of all gets the news she will not survive, how does a person deal with this news. We try to help, try to get her home from Alberta to her home in New Brunswick. Finally that day comes she and her husband are flown by air-ambulance to NB. She has a chance to see her mother and her other family and friends. Four days later she dies peacefully in her sleep. We are devastated, we will fight by putting a team in the Relay for Life and we are determined to do our part to eliminate cancer.