I’ve Lost Too Many People to Cancer

I know that, unfortunately, I am certainly not the only person who has lost loved ones to cancer. My Pap Pap died from pancreatic cancer when I was 9. He was such a kind man, I miss him to this day.

My husband is a cancer survivor, he had Leukemia and received a bone marrow transplant that saved his life, but Elizabeth, one of the great oncology nurses who cared for him and became a very dear friend, lost her battle with the disease that began as breast cancer and then spread. I watched her battle this horrific disease all the while worrying about her bills, watching her savings get depleted. Then there was Esther, a great therapist turned friend, who lost her battle with breast cancer and who said that the cost of going through and getting to and from treatments would take all that she had. I'll never forget when she said that even if she survived this disease she may not have a roof over her head. There are others I have lost to this disease, but it's difficult to write about all of them.

I've had too many ringside seats watching all that cancer takes from people and their families. I am too close to it again as a member of my family is currently fighting her own battle with this disease. It's hard to watch and you want to help, but sometimes you don't know how.

This is why I emcee Bike for Cancer Care each year at Dietz Stadium in Kingston. It's something that I can do. I'm a small part of the event that benefits the Rosemary D. Gruner Memorial Cancer Fund in partnership with the Benedictine Health Foundation and over the past 11 years they have helped more than 1,000 families in the Mid-Hudson Valley. This year's ride will be this Sunday, click here for details and times. I hope that you will join us and ride or simply donate. It may seem like a small thing, but I know that together, we can have a big impact on families and individuals currently struggling with this disease. Thank you in advance for whatever you can give.