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Word of thanks after successful cancer fight
To the editor:
I don't know why, but often I express myself better in writing ... maybe because the backspace key serves as my filter! So ... since my brother, Bruce, has a great friend who just happens to own the newspaper ...
My heart is so full I feel as though it will burst! As many of you may know, we found out my brother, Bruce had colon cancer last fall. It was especially devastating because he was the exact age as our father was at his onset of the same cancer which took his life. Bruce had surgery within a month followed by several chemo treatments which really took a toll on him. Those of you who know him know that he does not like to be down and certainly does not like for anyone to worry about him.
This journey has been so much easier because of the wonderful people here in Blytheville (and a few other places). Where to begin? My family: My husband, Vance, who Bruce does not think of as a brother-in-law, but as a brother. I love you always, thank you for devotion. My brother, Barry, I love you and appreciate you more every day of my life. Same goes for the sisters I was lucky enough to acquire: Diane (who loves my brother more than life itself), Denise and Kelly Hearn ... we have been through the valley and we are blessed with this remarkable man that would lay down his life for any of us. However, I do think Ryan, Logan, McKenzie, Abby and Hayes are at the very top of his list! I cannot forget the rest of my family who also make it evident that they love my brother. Fred and Sara, Dana, Jason, Allie and Aspen, thanks could never be sufficient! And Bruce's mother-in-law, Dalora, has truly gone above and beyond to help and I know he appreciates all you have done for him (them). You have been a lifesaver!
Bruce has a rather extensive extended family also: John Ed Reginold, you call him your son and know that he calls you his second father ... said he would never have made it without you. The man who could not speak to me about Bruce over the past few months without tearing up, Edward Reginold (yes, I noticed). It was as if you were talking about your brother ... because you were! I don't remember not knowing you because you have always been a part of our lives. Coach Larry Wright (his third father) who made him physically ill on a regular basis, yet, Bruce loves him. Herb Smith, David Tennyson, Danny, Susie and Brice Beck, Deb and Steve Smith ... you all have been such a tremendous source of strength for Bruce and I know you've fed him more than a time or two! I know he loves you all so! The Brileys, Bro. Max, Claudia and Gary. I thank God for placing you all in Bruce's life. He has loved you all forever and you have made a lasting impact on him. And Gary, I wasn't kidding when I said you had aged well! And, of course, loving us from afar now ... Greg, Donna, Jordan and Katie. Thank you all for everything. Love and miss you all so much!
From the day we found out, this community has rallied around us and it will never be forgotten. I work with the best staff ever at Blytheville Public Schools. Janice Philips, Alison Nichols, Suzanne Wallace, Beth Fitzgerald, Cynthia Fait, Kim Files, Susan Stonner, Jennifer Blankenship, Bobby Ashley, Don Davis, Helen Robertson, Tiffany Campbell, Norma Valley, Emily Crosskno, Phyllis Myers and so many more ... they have been with me through the entire journey and I love them! Kathy Riggs, Jill Hubbard, Ann and Tommie Coleman, Nancy Bray and so many others never saw me without asking about Bruce. Thanks so much ... you have no idea!
David Hixson sent me a text while Bruce was in surgery asking when he would be back on the golf course! Bobby Ashley, great friend blew up our phones worried about Bruce. Bill Kenner ... thank you ... I always got texts about kindness you had shown. Marty Orr, you kept his spirits up at the baseball games and probably didn't even know it! Steve Cox, Dennis Winston, Ron Calcagni, Mike Burlingame, Houston Nutt ... just in case you all get a Blytheville paper ... thank you for your unending love and support for my brother. He forwarded every text message to me. Some of them twice because he forgets things! A huge thank you to all of his golf buddies for keeping him going! That was huge!
Thank you to my rock, Dr. Tommie Westbrook and his saint of a wife Freda ... well you know how I feel! To my prayer warrior, Cynthia McCustion ... ditto! Our Sunday school class was so faithful with their prayers and updates even when I wasn't there! Believe me I felt it!
Lori Hixson, Leslie Mason, Sally Harris, Alicia Rose, Misty Manrique, Cindy and Craig Carlock, Stephanie and Trey Hale, you all have sustained me, been my comic relief or whatever I needed.
This journey has reaffirmed to me how great our God is. As my brother sat in my office so choked up because he didn't have to take his last chemo treatment ... he is cancer-free ... his final words were "just imagine what dad went through." What a man! My answer to that is God is great and our father received the ultimate healing on Jan. 30, 1994.
Love and God Bless,