Vail Valley Charitable Fund: Gratitude abounds
Vail Valley Charitable Fund

I was fine and felt great. I exercised daily, ate healthy, and took care of myself physically and mentally. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that the diagnosis of cancer would apply to me — until it happened.
I was simply minding my own business while sitting on the couch watching a movie with my kids when I found a fairly large lump. In that moment, I started to tear up because I knew, at least part of me did. I tried to talk myself out of it. “Maybe it’s just a cyst,” I said to myself. I put it out of my head to get by. I hadn’t had a mammogram in five years, so I got in to see the doctor as soon as I could.
At the end of 2020, I went through several tests which came back positive for stage 3 breast cancer, grade 3. On top of receiving the positive test results for breast cancer, they also had found a cancerous thyroid nodule. Things quickly became very daunting when the doctors gave me the treatment plan of chemotherapy, a double mastectomy, radiation and reconstruction — all of which were going to consume the next couple of years of my life.
Being a single working mom, my thoughts went straight to the kids and how I was going to support and be there for them. As the medical bills started to pile up, I heard about the Vail Valley Charitable Fund through a friend. Wanting to heal naturally along with Western medicine and all the stresses that come with the diagnosis of cancer, I quickly applied for a grant through the VVCF.
Receiving this gift was a huge blessing to my children and me. I am very grateful to the VVCF for their generosity and the community I feel blessed to be a part of. Today, I feel amazing. I had a great response from the treatment and continue to practice self-care and enjoy each moment I am given. I am so very grateful for the people in my life and the valley in which I live. My life has changed forever in a great way.
