09/14/2024
Day 7 of su***de prevention week: Did you know that Megan was a cancer survivor/warrior, and leaned on her faith to beat a very aggressive cancer? Many of y’all know her story really well, but for those who don’t know the details, she enlisted into the US Army, and went to Ft. Sill in OK for boot camp. She almost made it to graduation, but had to come home on crutches with a medical discharge because her knee was in really bad shape. We took her to the doc thinking we probably need to repair an acl or something, but unfortunately it was osteosarcoma, which is an aggressive bone cancer. For the next year we went through chemo, multiple surgeries, and living life out of Children’s hospital for a good part of 2018. She ended up having to have her right leg amputated. Of course she could no longer go back into the military, which serving our amazing country was a lifelong dream for her. The next several years were filled with lots of doctors, physical therapy, surgeries, prosthetic equipment with lots of adjustments, and learning how to walk, and eventually learning how to run thanks to your generosity. 5 years later we had her 5 year scan, which was clean and clear. We were all thrilled because being cancer free 5 years after diagnosis is a pretty good sign that it is unlikely to come back. She was thrilled to have “beat cancer,” and we all thanked God for getting her through this. Megan had strong faith, as well as our whole family, and He was so good to us through those difficult years. Personally, since the diagnosis God gave me a clear sense of peace that she was going to get through it. We knew it would be hard, but I also knew for sure that she was going to be a ok.
The support of all of you meant the world to us. God’s grace, and your love truly brought us through those 5 years, and thank you!!!
See the videos below for a clip of the first time she stood on a prosthetic leg. Our church also did a video telling her story and how she leaned on faith to get through everything. Links to those and Megan’s song are at the end of this post.
Funny story, when she was a few rounds into chemo her hair started falling out, and it was really starting to bother her. Not simply losing the hair, but it was an uncomfortable process. She came up to me and said, “dad, you know a lot about being bald. You want to buzz my hair off?” The way she said it was hilarious, and if you knew her you can understand that sense of humor. After I laughed a lot, I of course did that and she rocked the bald look!!
A few weeks after Megan learned that she was 5 years cancer-free, celebrating that and being happy to be alive, she was gone. It made no sense, and still does not make sense. She survived a brutal cancer that took her right leg, but somehow she did not survive the emotional toll of having cancer and what it took to get through it.
If you struggle with depression and suicidal thoughts, you are worth it, the world is so much better with you here, and you are not broken.
***de
Megan’s song:
https://youtu.be/FwsMOfsFZoA?si=iDbgzaEa6ptYfhtq
https://youtu.be/TFr1S0l5jcU?si=5gbLvrBjLqL6EeZ9
https://youtu.be/LzOZ9Mnu1BQ?si=H9Hf8LXMRa5Ax9ru
