10/13/2026
REMINDER: Adams County Breast Cancer Support Group tonight at 7pm!! Look for the pink lit up coffee shop!
💗I will share this every year, but this cause is so near and dear to my heart.
As most of you know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. It never meant that much to me until it hit home. This may get lengthy.🥹
My mother got her diagnosis in the fall of 2017. I’ll never forget how it felt when my parents told us that she had Triple Negative Breast Cancer. I never imagined in 1000 years we would have to watch our mom go through cancer. That was what happened to other people not us. Right?! Don’t we all feel that way until something finds its way to our own doorstep? Our worlds were rocked.
What would I ever do without my mom? I didn’t and still don’t even want to think about it. My husband had 2 aunts that were also going through cancer at that time. How could it be happening to both sides of our families?! Emotions I had never experienced. How were my kids going to handle seeing their mamaw, the one they baked with, spent the night with, just spent their summer with and now completely unsure of our future with her.
I remember one day I went over to sit with my mom to give my dad a break. I sat in the chair beside the couch and just stared at her. Tears streaming. She had no idea I was even there. She was so weak and fragile. As she slept, I watched her night gown barely raise and lower as she took the most shallow of breaths. I counted the seconds between each breath. Her perfectly round head barely covered in white peach fuzz. Her pale little face laid on her soft hands. I remember looking at every little detail of her because I never wanted to forget any of it….just in case. Just as a mother does to her newborn baby.
We went through fall, Thanksgiving and Christmas with our fragile mother. I think I can speak for all of my siblings when we thought that was going to be our last one with her. It was a Christmas like no other. We appreciated it so much more. We took in every second of it. We watched her every move. We watched her as she tried to put on a smile and stay awake through all of the opening of presents, the laughing, the food(that wasn’t prepared by her so it wasn’t as good), and the absence of the annual Christmas cookies(still a little salty about that, Linda😆).
The new year also brought forth a renewed hope. My mom was getting better with each passing day. We were starting to feel like we were getting our mom back. The treatments were almost over. February 20th 2018, my mom took her last chemo treatment. She still had around 30 radiation treatments, but we were positive, if the cancer didn’t take her out, that the awful chemo would. We were so glad when that was over.
Clay and I were to be married later that fall in October. All I wanted was for my mom to be there. Not only was she able to be there, she made my wedding cake. Neuropathy and all. That cake could’ve came in pieces in a bowl and I would not have cared. Just to know, that cake was made by the women who had just beat and survived, what tried to take her out. My mom is a survivor!💞
Our county is so very fortunate to have an absolutely outstanding group known as The Adams County Breast Cancer Support Group. They meet right here at the coffee shop the 2nd Tuesday of every month. Let me tell you, I wish we had this when we were going through it with my mom. What an informative group this is. The women in charge of it have walked the path of cancer themselves. They know exactly what it’s like.
Through this, the group has learned about acupuncture, wigs, reconstructive surgery, natural healing remedies, testimonies from other women and so much more. To hear each of their stories each month is just so wonderful. They have put together so many resources for women and if they don’t have, I guarantee they can probably find it for you. If you would like to know more about this group, feel free to contact Angie McCoy, Regina Justice or Toni Starline. You can also contact me and I will put you in touch with any of these three women. I think it’s something anyone going through it, having survived it, or being affected by it should attend at least one time to see what it’s about. The love and support found through this group is just amazing.
💞💞
