On June 25th, 2009 my entire world changed. My strength, my rock, the person I idolized the most in this world took her last breath, she was my mom. I never knew I could feel such emptiness , such heartache but here I was a 23 year old, completely lost and alone in a world I could barely recognize. My mom passed away of colon cancer and prior to her diagnosis , I hadn’t known anyone who had cancer let alone who would go through on day after day , year after year fighting for their life , fighting for their family. My mother was the definition of a fighter if I ever knew one! She was strong , unwavering in her faith and belief that she would overcome even when everything seemed to fail her. In spite of a terminal prognosis early on in her fight, she simply refused to give up, out lasting by years the prognosis the doctors would put in front of her. However in the end, the choice was no longer hers and the fight would be no more. Today and everyday I choose to honor her and the strength she embodied , the overwhelming love she gave til her dying breath. This is why I am choosing to fight in honor of my mothers memory , so no daughter , son or any family member for that matter should find themselves in my shoes, alone in a world they could no longer recognize because of cancer. Manmie Cherie this is for you !