Accident changed life of relay team member
May 6, 2009
By Laura Geggel
Shirley Kelley was in the habit of walking her dog in the wee hours of the morning. Every day, she would wake up at 3 a.m., take a lap around her neighborhood and then drive to Echo Glen Children’s Center, where she works as a teacher’s assistant.
A cold day in January 2007 was no exception, except that her dog was feeling more feisty than usual.
“She pulled me backwards,” Kelley said. “I fell and hit my head and cut it open.”
She rushed to Evergreen Hospital Medical Center, but while repairing her head and running some tests to check for brain damage, doctors noticed something out of the ordinary.
Kelley had brain cancer. After telling her different treatment options, doctors asked her which course she would like to pursue.
“Take it out!” she remembered saying.
The first surgery went well, as surgeons carefully removed as much of the tumor as they could without damaging her occipital lobe and ruining the vision in her left eye.
A second surgery followed the first, but remnants of the tumor are still in her brain. Now, Kelley drives from North Bend to the University of Washington Medical Center once a week for a blood draw, visits the doctor once a month and gets an MRI every two months to make sure her cancer does not spread.
“So far, they’re saying it’s good,” Kelley said.
Between doctor visits, Kelley invests time in what makes her blossom.
“I enjoy reading and I take care of my flowers,” she said.
She also spoils her five grandchildren, three of them living on the Eastside and two who visit her from Phoenix. The oldest may only be 6 years old, but Kelley has grand plans for supporting them through their highs and lows.
“I’m going to make it,” Kelley said. “I want to see those grandchildren get married.”
Kelley has also found a supportive network by joining Lisa Newell’s cancer survivor group.
“She is very cute,” Newell said. “Everyone just kind of adores Shirley. We call her the special one of our group because she was, at the time, the only one without breast cancer.”
Newell encouraged other cancer patients or survivors to join the support group, which meets the second Saturday of every month at 9 a.m. at Sawdust Coffee Co. in the Factory Stores at North Bend. Their next meeting is May 9.
Both Newell and Kelley are on Team Survivor for the Relay For Life of Snoqualmie Valley. To donate to their team, visit www.snovalleyrelay.org.
Team Survivor is holding several fundraisers as well, including a bake sale starting at 9 a.m. at the North Bend Safeway May 16.
Teresa Warren, Kelley’s neighbor and fellow cancer fighter, had nothing but praise for how Kelley has faced her cancer and helped others manage with theirs. When Warren first moved to North Bend, Kelley introduced herself and empathized with the family of three, explaining how she herself was living with brain cancer. Now, Kelley regularly baby-sits the Warrens’ young daughter when they are too busy or tired from work and dealing with Teresa’s cancer treatments.
“She came down and visited me and brought me a big bouquet of flowers,” Warren remembered. “She is the sweetest thing. Even though she’s been going through treatment this whole time, she’s always offered her help.”
And all of this happened after Kelley’s dog caused her to lose her balance.
“The doctor said the fall was a good thing,” said Kelley, gearing up for the Relay For Life and beating her cancer once and for all.
Reacah reporter Laura Geggel at 392-6434 .221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com.
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