The fight against cancer is always personal.
“If my children or anyone they know ever have to hear those
three words, ‘You have cancer,’” says Shelly, “I want it to be
followed by, ‘But it’s no big deal. You will be fine.’”
Shelly’s resolve is based on the pain she endured watching
her big brother, Jeff, pass away five years after a diagnosis
of inoperable stage IV colorectal cancer. Jeff was only 30
years old. “In the months before he died, all I could do was
stand by his side and watch it happen,” Shelly says, her voice
breaking. “I have never felt so helpless in all my life.”
Shelly is determined to fight for every single
person living with cancer today and everyone who will be
diagnosed in the future. That’s why she participates in Lights of
Hope, the signature fundraiser of the American Cancer Society
Cancer Action Network℠ (ACS CAN), each
fall.
During Lights of Hope, Shelly and others dedicate Lights of
Hope bags in memory or in honor of loved ones affected by
cancer. It’s a nationwide visual reminder to Congress that they
need to do more to help fight this disease.
“I’ve dedicated a Light of Hope for my brother,” Shelly
says, “and my children have used their allowance money to
dedicate one for their Uncle Jeff. There isn’t a dollar amount
I can pay to have Jeff hug me one more time or watch him play
with my children. But I can honor his fight to make sure his
voice, his story is heard.”
We know the fight against cancer is personal for you, too,
John. Thank you for your support of ACS CAN to help make a
difference for people facing cancer.
Want to know more about Lights of Hope?
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