Do you remember your best childhood friend, the one that saw you through everything and could always make you feel better about the bad things in life, be it as small as a pimple or as big as a broken heart? Is that person still a part of your life today? I am so blessed to be able to say yes to that question.
I’ve known April since we were 7, though we didn’t go to the same elementary school. On the first day of junior high, during Mr. Wimer’s class, we became locker partners and fast friends. She’s been with me ever since and through it all: the hard teenage years, the harder part of leaving everyone and everything behind for the Army, and the many times that I’ve started my life over in a new place or with a new resolve. We have one of those incredibly solid friendships that flow with time, and the few times a year when we can get together to catch up it is so difficult to encapsulate all the things we want to say.
Because we often go long stretches of time without frequent updates I didn't realize something terrible had happened that would forever change her life. In 2008, April's father Dean Miles was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma. I had never even heard of that before, but it's cancer, and a bad one at that (not that any form is desirable). I was shocked to read her email updating me on what had happened and how they were working to treat it; his chances were really slim and they were considering a stem cell transplant and any other available treatment.
It's not often that I wish I still lived in my hometown, but that email prompted feelings of helplessness and separation that would somehow dissipate were I closer to comfort April and her family.
Dean began treatment and his condition improved, or at least stabilized. While the family helped care for him when he was outside of the hospital, April spent a great deal of time with him. My favorite story was how they cleaned out his garage and organized all of his tools. If you know Dean, you know his love for cars (to include his '57 Corvette convertible) and this was no small feat to accomplish. In many ways this cancer brought their family closer together, more aware of the precious gift of life and appreciation of the time they have to share. It even went deeper than that: April was so dismayed to see how her father was treated by some of the nurses during his treatments that she resolved to become a nurse herself and do a better job of caring for cancer patients. I am so proud to say she is well on her way to accomplishing this goal.
While I train for my biggest running events, working with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to find a cure for blood cancers such as the one Dean fights has become my way of helping others outside my reach. Finding a cure is crucial not only for the lives of those who battle it, but also for their loved ones. Please help me on this crusade against cancer by donating today: Emmie's LLS Fundraising Page.
