At 74, she\u2019s more active than many folks half her age, volunteering at her local hospital several days a week to welcome patients, help others being discharged and taking specimens to the lab. Once a month, she volunteers for the Sunshine Group at her local adult center, providing respite for area residents whose loved ones need full time care. She\u2019s active in her church. She takes part in the King William Relay for Life fundraiser.<\/p>\n
After 32 years as secretary at the local high school, the bustle is familiar to her \u2013 as are the faces of \u201cher kids\u201d coming through the doors of the hospital. Of course, many of \u201cher kids\u201d are now parents with their own families. Seeing Ann brings a sense of calm and joy as they head in and out of the hospital. But that calm isn\u2019t limited to people she knows. Ann radiates tranquility to everyone she meets. \u201cYesterday, I was wheeling a patient to oncology and she mentioned that she has stage 4 cancer. I told her that I was a survivor as well and she perked up, \u2018Seeing what you\u2019re doing, here helping me, gives me hope. \u2018\u201d<\/p>\n
Deciding to help<\/strong><\/p>\n For Ann, the decision to help is necessary. \u201cHelping people makes you forget about yourself. \u00a0It brings a peace to you about where you are in your life.\u201d<\/p>\n As a Support Volunteer, Ann serves in multiple roles \u2013 as a survivor of bladder cancer and as a caregiver. Her expertise in both roles is hard won. Clarence, her beloved husband of 45 years suffered a stroke. One week later, Ann was diagnosed with her first bout of cancer. Clarence recovered. She battled through. She had recurrence followed by recurrence (six in total) followed by major surgery to remove her bladder and create a new one from a part of her small intestine. Five years after his stroke and Ann\u2019s initial cancer diagnosis, Clarence was also diagnosed with bladder cancer.<\/p>\n For many people this series of events would be a perfect excuse to curl up in a ball and shut out the world. It\u2019d be more than enough reason to become bitter, angry and\u00ad despondent.<\/p>\n For Ann, it\u2019s been an opportunity to rely on her personal faith and to deepen her commitment to helping others. A practical Southern Lady in the truest sense of the word, she focuses on the happy memories, the best of the times. Talk to Ann for more than a few moments and you get the feeling that she\u2019s the kind of person who could find the \u201csilver lining\u201d in any situation. \u201cI meet some families who are going through so much you wonder how they do it. I never found anything was too difficult for me (as she cared for him in his final years.) since I had the Lord with me.\u201d<\/p>\n Focusing on what matters most<\/strong><\/p>\n Ann focuses on what\u2019s important \u2013 in the years between her initial diagnosis and Clarence\u2019s death, they traveled, an activity they\u2019ve enjoyed for decades. \u201cHe got to go to Alabama to see the grandchildren for six years,\u201d she recalls. \u201cWe took a lot of Sunshine Bus tours, from Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island to Branson, Missouri. He was on the quiet side and I\u2019m a people person. We really liked taking trips together.\u201d<\/p>\n She offers suggestions \u2013 and hope \u2013 for fellow patients and caregivers still in their cancer struggle. \u201cThey\u2019re coming out with new treatments, new research and new drugs all the time. Don\u2019t lose faith in the possibility of hope. Once you give up, there\u2019s nothing a doctor can do. Of course it\u2019s ok to get your affairs in order, but try to remember that the Lord is in charge.\u201d<\/p>\n