Mom; Part Three

Here is the final portion of Mom's Cancer story.  This is the speech that I presented for Lung Force - a campaign started on May 12th by the American Lung Association to bring awareness, recognition, and support to Lung Disease.  I've made a few tweaks, but hope you'll appreciate the message. 

I hope this goes without saying, but please recognize how difficult it was for me to write and then publicize this.  Any harsh words or criticism will be removed to protect my family and I.  

You can find Part One here and Part Two here. 

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On Friday, September 7^th, I went home to pick-up Mom and take her for a chemo treatment at the hospital, but something didn’t seem right.  She was still in bed, seeming to be in more pain than before, and wasn’t dressed and ready to go.  This was the first time in her treatment that she wasn’t dressed, ready, and waiting for me when I arrived.  After a few minutes with mom, I had some concerns and called my go-to for medical advice,  my husband Kevin, we discussed the weakness in her grip and speech patterns and decided that a trip to the Emergency Room was in order.  I’ve never been so sad to be right in my whole life, Mom had suffered a stroke sometime that day.  The next three days were filled with tests, information that there were even more tumors than previously, and a transfer to intensive care.  We spent my dad’s 60^th birthday in the hospital, and possibly the hardest phone call my dad has ever had to make to the Red Cross.  The Red Cross was our lifeline to the Army, to contact my brother who during Mom’s hospital stay was training in Georgia. 

Just 5 days after she walked into the hospital, my little brother finally made it home, and she was discharged via ambulance to come home on hospice.  We had another 7 days with mom at home, and filled her days with friends, family, and books – the things she knew and loved.  I’ve said for a lot of years that when I “grew up” I wanted to have friends like my parents – this was only cemented after these two weeks.  Friends would stop by, with beer, muffins, or just to say hi.  They would sit for hours, in her bedroom, in the kitchen, or playing outside with the dog.  My mom’s amazing brothers & dad came every single day to visit, give us a chance to nap, and help in any way they could.  I’ve never been brought to tears by food, but when the “Bookheimer men” showed up with lasagna and a 6-pack, I couldn’t even find the words to say thank-you.  After 7 days at home, mom was “on hospice”, but still clearly in charge.  She couldn’t find all the words, but found a way to tell us she wanted to go downstairs.  She wasn’t strong enough to do the stairs on her own, so Kevin, Chris, & Dad carried her down, cheerleader style.  She relaxed in the kitchen with us while we ate dinner and then napped in the living room while we watched tv before bed.  We made one more trip back upstairs before bed & could tell she was exhausted, but happy.  All it took was a trip downstairs and an evening with her family for her to truly relax.  The next day, Wednesday, September 19^th, just 13 months after being diagnosed with cancer, we lost my mom’s battle with Lung Cancer.  

My mom was a fighter through and through – I am blessed with her ability to find the positive in any situation, organize my way through anything life may throw at me, and am a solution seeker.  These skills and my love for my mom, have brought me to where I am today.  I was so unsure of many things when we lost her, but one thing I am confident about is my ability to help others.  I began my journey with the American Lung Association in October of 2012 – just a few weeks after my mom’s passing.  I needed to do SOMETHING – and the Fight for Air Climb gave me something to put my energy into, something to fundraise for, and an event to attend with my family, friends & supporters.  I’ve participated in other “non-profit” events, but the combination of the ALA’s specific goal and cause, combined with their obvious love and dedication to this cause is what continues to bring me back time and time again.  In the 20 months I’ve participated in the American Lung Assn events, Team Little Debbie has participated in 3 Fight for Air Climbs in Eastern PA and raised more than $10,000 in the fight against lung disease.  My goal continues to be twofold – first to keep the memory of my mom and her legacy alive every day.  Second, to do all I can to help find a cure for these diseases – so no son or daughter should face this kind of hurt again.  

Mom; Part Two

Here is part two (of three) of Mom's Cancer story.  This is the speech that I presented for Lung Force - a campaign started on May 12th by the American Lung Association to bring awareness, recognition, and support to Lung Disease.  I've made a few tweaks, but hope you'll appreciate the message. 

I hope this goes without saying, but please recognize how difficult it was for me to write and then publicize this.  Any harsh words or criticism will be removed to protect my family and I.  

You can find Part One here. 

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Inevitably, her hair started to fall out.  I think that was harder on me than it was on Mom.  Ever the planner, she had already chosen and ordered her wig – cute, red, and short just like her natural hair.  She scheduled an appointment with our hairdresser, had her head shaved and the wig styled to match her usual hair cut.  She left work on Friday with her natural hair and returned Monday with a wig – not that you’d know it by looking at her.  I will never forget how excited she was to call me Monday night – someone at work didn’t know it was a wig and commented to Mom how much they loved her highlights!! 

Through another round of chemo, she worked full-time, we spent our every other Fridays together, and things seemed mostly status quo:  Some tumors were shrinking, others stayed the same, but none were getting larger – and that was a victory for us!  However, in her June CAT scan, we saw that some tumors had actually grown, and that a new tumor was showing in her hip.  Over the next 12 weeks, this tumor would continue to grow, pressing on her sciatic nerve and compromising her quality of life.   

It was like a stranger had taken the place of the energetic, vivacious, personality filled woman we knew and loved.  August 24^th began a new round of chemo, what we were told were more potent drugs and that things would likely get worse before they got better.  I had no idea just how bad they were about to me.  This chemo took a great toll on Mom’s body, already compromised by the tumors, and now I truly felt like she was a cancer patient.  The months preceding this treatment were time consuming and stressful, but this was emotionally and physically exhausting for our entire family.   

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(Part 3 to come) 

Mom; Part One

Here is part one (of three) of Mom's Cancer story.  This is the speech that I presented for Lung Force - a campaign started on May 12th by the American Lung Association to bring awareness, recognition, and support to Lung Disease.  I've made a few tweaks, but hope you'll appreciate the message. 

I hope this goes without saying, but please recognize how difficult it was for me to write and then publicize this.  Any harsh words or criticism will be removed to protect my family and I.  

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Every five minutes, a woman in the United States is diagnosed with Lung Cancer. 

On August 30^th, 2011 at 4:00pm, that woman was my mom, Debbie.

My name is Jessica and I’m here tonight to tell you about my late mother, her one year battle with lung cancer, and how it has affected my life.  This photo is of our last family vacation, in Bar Harbor Maine, taken just 6 weeks before her diagnosis.  We spent 10 days hiking, boating, relaxing in Maine – and it was wonderful to spend time together as a family.  I had no idea it would be the last trip we would take together - or the last time I would feel unbridled joy.  Mom was a little short of breath and coughing a bit, but we thought maybe mom had bronchitis, or pneumonia, and it wasn’t a huge concern – who wouldn’t be short of breath and coughing at 60 years old after an 8 mile hike!   

We came home, and began to see doctors about her symptoms.  Following a lung biopsy and meeting with an oncologist, Mom was diagnosed with Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.  I was shocked, mad, sad, and frustrated.  These emotions & many others were overwhelming as we called those we loved the most to tell them about her diagnosis.  The most difficult call was to my brother, Christopher, who was deployed with the US Army to Korea for 18 months.  I could hear his heart break through the phone, and had none of the answers he needed.  I googled my heart out – stunned to find that her five year survival estimate was less than 20% - she wouldn’t see me turn 30, she wouldn’t see my brother get married, how was this possible?! How did someone who yes, was a casual smoker in her 20’s and 30’s get Lung Cancer!  She exercised 30 minutes a day, ate chicken and carrots for lunch, and was in wonderful health her entire life.  She was a 60 year old woman, who was in better shape than lots of 30 year olds I know – this would benefit her in the weeks and months to come.  

Like most cancer patients, once we got over the shock of her diagnosis, it was time to form a plan – and that plan involved chemotherapy.  Dad took her to so many doctors’ appointments he had his own notebook with names, terms, and questions to ask.   The more challenging aspect of the diagnosis and treatment was understanding the words, phrases, and medical jargon that these doctors tossed our way.  It made it hard to form coherent thoughts at times, especially as Mom was accepted into a medical study.  This meant rather than just a regular drug, she was going to get a trial drug – results unknown.  Her first round of chemo was every other Friday for 12 weeks, and I took her to (almost) every session.  Mom was a little lady, and there is no way she was safe to drive before or after chemo.  Although that didn’t have anything to do with the chemo itself, it was the Benadryl that made her loopy, silly, and a general good time!  But we made the most out of those  8 hour sessions – we Christmas shopped online, made photo books for gifts, and watched movies.  I guess you’re supposed to be quiet in the treatment area, but Mom & I must have missed that memo – we laughed, got scolded, and laughed some more.  While Chris was home over Christmas Block Leave, he took Mom to chemo – and she asked him to go in his full Army dress uniform.  She had talked and talked to the nurses about how proud she was, and she made the most of her time to show him off.  So there he sat for 8 hours, all dressed up, spending some quality time with Mom.  No way was cancer going to keep Mom down – with the exception of those chemo sessions, she worked full-time through treatment.  

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(Part 2 to come) 

Snow Day Entertainment

While I may be at work today, I know lots of people are home, snowed in.  I decided to help entertain people and keep you occupied - ya know, for your own good.  So here goes: 

1.  Make a donation to the Philly Fight for Air Climb!  Pick any member of Team For Little Debbie (link here).  If you need a reason to donate, please see this, this, or this.  

2.  Order a For Little Debbie t-shirt!!! This is a small fundraiser, but I'm hoping that each member of our team, plus 40 more people will all be sporting our For LD shirts in 44 days.  Short Sleeve are $14 and Long Sleeve are $18.  You can find the order form here. 

3. Thank a soldier.  I'm not picky about organizations, branches of the military, or how you say thanks.  Just Do It.  

4.  Help us decide what kind of car Kevin should buy.  Extra bonus points for ridiculous items such as 'short enough Jessica can reach the roof' OR comes in the same two tone paint job as Emma Jean.  What's that, you don't know who Emma Jean is? Okay, I'll blog about that someday too! 

5.  Guess what church I grew up in.  I'll give you one clue:  my boss is wrong, and try as he might, I will not admit to being Amish.  

6.  Google 'Surprise Military Homecomings' and try to tell me they aren't the most emotional, amazing videos on the internet.  

7.  Go play in the snow... 

We Survived! Fight for Air Climb Recap

First - let me apologize for the seriously belated update on the Fight for Air Climb from March 23rd.  It was an amazing day, reaffirmed the support of amazing family, and empowered me to continue the fight! There were more than 500 people that participated, and with 5 of us on team For Little Debbie - we raised just $5 short of $3,000 for our team!

 The current total raised for the whole event is more than $163,000! 

For anyone who is interested in the timed results (it is a "competition" while being a fundraiser), the full results can be found here - Fight For Air Climb Results Philly 2013. 

Considering the incredibly early morning to get into the city by 7am, we had a great turn-out for our little team! Obvious early risers were Terry, Titus, Tweet, Kevin, and myself since we were running.  Tommy and Fred also came down - and those of you that know Jon will be shocked to hear that he was EARLY and at Terry's before 6am! 

The event began with speakers, then the Century Climbers (those of us crazy enough to do the 50 flights twice), then traditional climbers, and First Responders. Titus and Kevin rocked the first set of stairs in less than 10 minutes, while it took me a little closer to 13.  The second flight Kevin and Titus tried to stay with me, but still finished about 2 minutes ahead.  Terry and Tweet did amazing on their trip up the 50 flights of stairs and did the whole thing together! They finished 4th and 8th in their age groups respectively - HECK YES! 

 I will have more pictures as I get dad's, but here are some of my favorites courtesy of my phone. I think the shot down to the Art Museum is my favorite! 

Thank you again for all of your emotional, financial, and continued support! Get ready for the final push as we great ready for Relay for Life on June 1st!

Fight for Air - Introduction & Information

Today I have a super duper important meeting to attend in Philadelphia after work.  That meeting is for the Team Captains for the Fight for Air Climb Philadelphia 2013.  I am nervous about meeting other team captains, since our team is just Kevin and I - but I know we have as much heart as any 10 person team! I've included some information below to clue you in about the Climb, and have a post in the works for our basic training program and how we're getting our butts in shape for this adventure!

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Kevin and I are excited to have signed up for the American Lung Associate Fight for Air Climb in Philadelphia.  The climb is on March 23rd, which thankfully gives us plenty of time to train and fund-raise!

Who: Team Little Debbie, which is currently made up of just Kevin & I (and anyone else who would like to join).  

Plus or minus 1000 other participants.

What: Philadelphia 2013 Fight for Air Climb -

Century Climb (This means we are doing the full climb TWICE) 

A total of 100 flights/2176 Steps

When: March 23, 2013 at 8:30AM until we finish or fall over

Where: Three Logan Square, Philadelphia
AKA -------> That building

 

 Why: Lung cancer is the leading cancer killer in both men and women, responsible for more deaths than breast, ovarian, cervical and prostate cancers combined!  Each year, about 160,000 people die from lung cancer in the U.S., accounting for more than one in four cancer deaths. Also for those suffering from asthma, emphysema, and COPD.



How: We are now officially registered, and are responsible for raising $100 each.  Our goal is to raise $500 each, which seems like a large amount of money, until you consider that is less than $7/day from now until March 23rd.

You had to have known that this part was coming, so please forgive me for asking.  For those of you that knew my Mom, I hope you will consider making a small donation in her memory.  Won't you help us make an impact in Debbie's name and help motivate Kevin and I?  I will not recount all of the wonderful things that the American Lung Association does, but please visit their website if you have any questions, concerns, or just want to learn more about this organization.   
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 In case you missed the 42 links included in the post - our team page can be found on the For Little Debbie blog or here - http://action.lung.org/goto/forlittledebbie

Holiday Distraction, and My Apologies

Ladies and Gents - 

I wanted to take a quick moment and apologize for the lack of posting these past 10 days.  I know there are always tons of excuses, but I promise I have a good one. Those of you that know my family obviously know that Christopher (little brother) will deploy in January for Afghanistan.  Those are incredibly hard words to type or say, and my heart aches at the thought of saying goodbye.  BUT - He is home, in the 610, for 21 days.  Those 21 days have been my Christmas Insanity Motivation and with the exception of 2 gifts that UPS is holding hostage, I am done Christmas shopping.  I set a goal way back before Halloween that I would spend every available moment with Chris while he was home, and not in lines or fighting traffic at the mall. Being without Deb and Mary Elyn this Christmas is providing challenges I never knew we'd have to face. Tomorrow I take my dad's house hostage as he has absolutely zero Christmas decorations and the Christmas tree is still on the back porch, waiting for the stand, lights, and decorations. I hope a little Christmas cheer can find it's way into the Moyer household tomorrow and make the heart ache a little easier.

I hope you'll forgive what will likely be light posting over the next 18 days, and I'll catch back up just as soon as I can. I haven't forgotten about Gone With the Wind, but am trying to find a venue that is convenient and casual and will allow the most people possible to participate.  

As a thank you for hanging in there, here is my favorite family shot from Christmas a few years ago: 

Love, Jessi

February 2013 - Schwenkfelder

A few more specifics on the February event are listed below - I will be going through the year this week and next and then will post updates, questions, and requests as they come up. 
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I am excited to schedule a trip to the Schwenkfelder Library & Heritage Center for February! I know this will not be interesting to many people outside of my family, but there are several items Mom discussed donating for years that I feel should be completed.  There was also an article recently published in the Schwenkfelder magazine that included Louisa (my great-grandmother), and I am very interested in learning what other information they may have.  As far as I'm concerned, Mom held all the knowledge I learned about our family, so I will be armed with a notebook and camera for this trip so I don't forget any important details! 

A little back story on the Heritage Center and some information on the Central Schwenkfelder Church is below. 

From the Library's website - 

We are a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and interpreting the history of the Schwenkfelders and the history of southeastern Pennsylvania and the Perkiomen Region. The Heritage Center offers educational programming and tours, exhibits, workshops, and events throughout the year. 

Exhibits that will be in place in February include "Modern Design in the Valley", focusing on furniture design and "The Art of Rebecca Ross" which features Rebecca's art focusing on traditional symbols and symbolism.   

This is Central Schwenkfelder ^

Courtesy of the Church's Website - The Central Schwenkfelder Church Mission Statement -

 "Love God. Serve Others. Grow Disciples."

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I can't wait to see what we can learn from the Heritage Center and what we can give them to continue their research and teaching process! 

Love, 

Jess