Meet families impacted by Inheritance of Hope!
Mike Coleman wears a patch to treat tumors in his brain that his 5-year-old daughter, Leah, calls his “snow cap.”
Leah has started kindergarten, joined the Girl Scouts, and loves dancing and Disney princesses. Although she may not know the technical term for her dad’s Novocure device, the Colemans from Lock Haven, Penn., started making efforts to
Last year the Kramers from Indiana went on their first family trip: an all-expenses-paid Legacy Retreat® in Orlando. Nolan, 5, and Aryka, 3, still talk about
Lori Newcome didn’t know about Huntington’s Disease until her father-in-law was diagnosed when she was a teenager.
The genetic disease affects one in 10,000 Americans, according to the Huntington’s Disease Society of America. It damages brain cells and involves a variety of physical and emotional symptoms as it slowly progresses.
Four years ago, Lori's husband, Brian, began acting differently and was forced
After nearly 18 years of marriage, Matt Herbster didn’t know how much more time he had with his high school sweetheart, Julie. She was 38 years old when she was diagnosed with colon cancer last year, and the disease quickly spread to her liver.
Lorenza Guereca doesn’t often let other people see what a challenge living with cancer has been.
She said strong faith keeps her positive after years of treatments. Lorenza, who lives with her husband and daughter in Lafayette, In., said she doesn’t dwell on her illness and makes the effort to maintain an optimistic attitude despite multiple diagnoses, hair loss, and hospital visits.
“You always see me with a smile,” she said. “I don’t think people realize how stressful it is.”
The stress began when
“There’s a really big need to tell your story,” said Julie Hull of Eagan, Minn.
Julie’s husband, Ken, was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer after a blood clot was found in his calf three years ago. Ken was a long-distance runner, and the cancer stunned Julie and their 12-year-old son, Sam.
“It drew us into a totally different plane,” Julie said.
Soon the Hulls were making routine hospital visits. Ken underwent 18 rounds of chemotherapy, 10 rounds of radiation, and two brain surgeries.
The first time Kimberly Loving received mail about Inheritance of Hope and its Legacy Retreats®, she placed the letter in a basket and walked away.
“I was so sick I couldn’t think about it,” she said.
It wasn’t until months later
This summer you can find the Lampe kids from Germantown, Ill., swimming at local pools and water parks.
“They don’t need big trips to a lot of places,” Lisa Lampe, mother of 10-year-old Jack and 6-year-old Jordyn, said. “If we go bowling one day, they’ll say this was the best day ever.”
Lisa said she and her kids have a special appreciation for the fun road-trip days that come between chemotherapy treatments and lab results.
“I can’t believe this is coming out of my mouth,” Kristen Ricciardelli said, “but I actually think it’s easier to be an active cancer patient than a post-cancer patient.”
She spoke from experience.
The mother of four from Milwaukee was still breast feeding her 8-month-old daughter when
Kim Bunner said living with cancer for more than a decade has given her perspective.
The illness brought her closer to her husband, Matt, and showed her children, 15-year-old Haylee and 12-year-old Cameron, how to be considerate, Kim said.
“You hate to say that something that is so hard on a family is a blessing,” she said.
“We see what stress really is and what stress really isn’t.”
Kim was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2001, when Cameron was six months old.
