Earlier this year I lost my grandmother, Earline Miller to a rare stomach cancer. As a Christmas gift in 2017, she was diagnosed with a terminal form of cancer; Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor (GIST).  The doctors informed her that she only had about 6 months to live. But, little did they know, Grammy had other plans.

My grandmother was resilient, fierce, loving, caring, strong, determined, and any other adjective that you could probably could think of.  She was the rock of the family and kept everything and everyone together. When things went bad, we never knew it.  She always wore a smile and lived her life as if each day was her best day.  She was a constant fighter, she fought for years with cancer. I remember receiving countless calls on endless nights, each stating the uncertainty of her making it through the night. But, she did. She made it through plenty of nights -3 yrs longer than doctors had written off.

You see, I learned a lot from her. I learned that no matter whether they say; "you can't", "it's impossible",  or "you're probably not going to make it", that you always have a fighting chance. When we are willing to fight, It's evidence or a testament that anything is possible!

No matter how hard I train physically and mentally, my fight will never be as strong as my grandmother’s or others who have lost their life to cancer. But, I will say - I am willing to put it all on the line and fight for those with little hope.  I want to help each cancer survivor who may need to be cared for, be in support of, research for and continued awareness made on their behalf.   Help us #KOCANCER and Join the fight!

Let's GIST do it!