Sunday, September 25, 2005 9:37 PM CDT
Their lives touched by cancer, Relay for Life participants fight back
By HERB MEEKER, Staff Writer
MATTOON -- Joyce Wilson of Charleston decided to open a "two-front" war on cancer this year.
The 72-year-old cancer survivor has been winning in her personal fight against breast cancer end of chemotherapy but when she realized how many women are facing the same fight, she decided to do more.
"When I read the statistics that one in seven women will experience breast cancer in their lifetime, I decided it was something I couldn't accept," she said Saturday in the Cancer Survivor Tent at the 10th annual American Cancer Society Relay for Life of Coles County.
So Wilson contacted 60 people she had worked with, and friends, too, to ask them to donate anything from $1 to $20 to help with the worldwide fight against breast cancer. Her sisters did the same thing, and together the women produced a $1,700 donation. The Relay for Life organizers hoped to raise nearly $100,000 through fund-raisers related to the event.
Wilson recalled 40 years ago a diagnosis of cancer amounted to a death sentence for people. It was a time of silence and unbearable worry for individuals and their relatives.
"Cancer is something you cannot be secretive about anymore. And that's because today cancer does not automatically mean death," Wilson said.
Held annually over the past 10 years, Relay for Life brings many other events together at Peterson Park, like group fund-raisers, walkers for monetary pledges, music, food and camaraderie between volunteers, many of whom have been touched by cancer in different ways.
This year, experts predict more than 59,000 Illinois residents will be diagnosed with some form of cancer.
That is why the survivor tent is important to Relay for Life. It shows how many people from Coles and surrounding counties are winning their personal wars against cancer. And many of them are young people.
Josh Green, 22, of Mattoon reached an important goal this month with his effort on cancer recovery: nine months of cancer remission. As a young person, he faced different challenges than Wilson.
"Many of the support groups are geared for people older than me. But I did find one for younger people. It helped bring in a positive spin and a chance to see a younger outlook on cancer. And there are more young people with cancer now," Green said.
He noted it was hard for him to cope with not being able to get up and around when he did not have the energy. A person his age should not face that problem, he said.
At one point in his interview with the newspaper, Green's greatest supporter his mom came up and kissed him on the forehead.
"I just wanted to see him turn red over that," she said as she walked away, offering a reminder that family love is strong ammunition against cancer's effect on morale.
Both Green and Wilson were speakers during Relay for Life.
Cam Luedke is an 11-year-old from Lerna who barely recalls the needle sticks and IVs he endured when he was diagnosed with lymphoblastic leukemia at age 4. He is in recovery and looks forward to the times when he can "run amok." On Saturday, he was waiting for a taste of cake and root beer floats in the park.
"He never really complained too much. He would just go with the flow," recalled Joyce Luedke, Cam's mother, of the stays and trips to a St. Louis hospital. "The toughest thing for me was seeing him go through everything."
The cancer society conducts programs that provide support and education to families throughout the year. Visit www.cancer.org for more information.
The relay is an event that starts in the afternoon and continues through the night and on to dawn. That is symbolic of a cancer patient's experience, said Melanie Carwell, a registered nurse who helped coordinate activities with the survivor tent.
"The reason we have it overnight is because the cancer patients will face a pretty long night' when they are in their treatments. Then at one point they will see dawn and then full sunlight. It is all about an individual journey," Carwell said.
But the relay is also a reminder that there are plenty of people to help on that journey.
Wilson is determined to make the journey to the relay event next year to continue her war on cancer.
"All my friends better be prepared for a call from Joyce," she said.
Contact Herb Meeker at hmeeker@jg-tc.com or 238-6869.
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Stephen wrote on Jul 17, 2006 8:22 AM: