This Year's Recipients
Lauren Ames
My name is Lauryn Ames. While I have had medical issues for as long as I can remember, this last year it has completely taken over my life. I thought I finally got the answers I needed after my first stomach surgery of June 2022 that removed a birth defect in my intestines (Meckels Diverticulum). Little did I know that would open the door to a plethora of severe medical problems- from unexplainable blood loss leading to severe anemia, precancerous cervical cells, full-body muscle spasms, ulceration on my intestines requiring another major abdominal surgery (February 7, 2024), to now discovering two large tumors on my liver. It has made me unable to hold even the easiest of jobs as well as impacting my ability to complete simple day to day tasks. It is rare for me to be able to get out and enjoy myself anymore without needing several recovery days on bed rest. I am scared, my family is scared, and my friends are scared, since it has been very difficult to find answers or even a concrete diagnosis. I am extremely grateful for the love and support given to me from friends, family and the community I grew up in. That love and support makes it feel like I’m not fighting this alone, making the darkest days so much brighter.
Jason James
My name is Jason James. I am second generation Eatonville graduate, raising the third generation here in our community. Both sets of my grandparents moved to Eatonville while they were raising their children. My parents purchased my mother’s childhood home, when I was 5. My parents raised 7 children (2 Biological, and 5 adopted) in the Eatonville School District. We are currently raising 3 children here as well (2 have graduated, and our third is a Senior this year). My current story, started just over a year ago, but the foundation started approximately 21 years ago. After spending the last 21 years supporting Cancer Awareness programs, and being involved extensively in Relay For Life one day it becomes very personal – 2012. That year, my mom was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. For me, I took it as a challenge that we just needed to fight through. For my kids, it was a very tough discussion, but I reminded them – This is Why We RELAY. That money we raised, went to help with diagnosis, treatments, research and hopefully one day a cure. Thankfully, my mom was able to fight the good fight, and come out stronger on the other side, and 12 years later, she is still here with us! My story started in approximately July of 2022. That is when I noticed something was off with my body. Something didn’t feel right in my neck area. And, as a typical man, I just sucked it up as just feeling “Under the Weather”. A couple weeks went by, and something was still not right with my gland area of my neck, and I wasn’t still feeling under the weather. This went on for several more weeks, where I would check my glands, it wouldn’t feel right, but I kept thinking things would get better, because I felt just fine otherwise. And then one day, I felt a lump. But again, just figured it would go away. But, being aware of it, made me constantly feel that area every few days, in hopes it would disappear and everything would be back to normal. Finally in August I made an appointment to see my Primary Care Doctor, and that is where this story Begins. This became a whirlwind of appointments, after appointments, tests after tests. But, by the time I had my second appointment, I had a good feeling what the outcome of all of this would be. I was on a mission though, to wade through the challenges of making doctor appointments, getting to those appointments, and trying to avoid missing work as much as possible, as I knew, that if the diagnosis came, the road ahead of me was going to be challenging. I avoided telling my children, as I didn’t see the need to concern them over something we had no confirmation on yet. But almost one month later, I got that “Dreaded Confirmation” You have Cancer ! Specifically “Metastatic Moderately Non-Keratinizing Squamous Cell Carcinoma. Now the hard part, was to sit down and have this conversation with my children. And of course, this is when I reminded them – This is Why We Relay! And, if Grandma can beat it, so can your dad! Of course, I am the type of guy, that deals with stress from the view of Laughter and Jokes. So I also reminded them, this is a Win Win Situation. I either Beat Cancer, or Beat you to Heaven. Either way I WIN! Over the next couple months, I continued the tests, medical procedures, and surgeries, to further diagnose my situation, and to prepare me for my coming treatment. What we found out was, that long “Diagnosis” in layman’s term was – Cancer of the Tongue Base, spread to my Neck Lymph Nodes. And what we also found out was, apparently my natural immune system fought off my Primary Cancer (Tongue Base), and all I had that was active, was the Cancer to my Lymph Nodes. What I didn’t know was the Hell I was about to go through. My treatment plan was to do Radiation and Chemotherapy Simultaneously. The medical team tries to do their best to explain what to expect, and when my Radiation Oncologist told me that this was one of the hardest treatments of all Cancers to Go Through, I brushed him off, saying that if my mom can go through this, and continue to haul rock in a 5 gallon bucket to finish filling her drain field while going through treatment – I’ve got this. My mom was my bar I had set for myself, and her willpower to accomplish what she did was my motivation to be as strong as her. Little did I realize, that just because you both have radiation and chemotherapy, it is NOT all the same. I took on this “Season” of Life with my Children as my “Big Why”, and my mom as the bar setting standard. This season, was literally the HARDEST thing I have ever gone through. I attempted to work full time through my treatment, continued to support my children as a father, and fought the difficult fight of this treatment. At the lowest part of this battle, I had lost 40 lbs., was on a liquid only diet of about 250 calories a day, and it took everything mentally and physically to keep moving forward. One thing I was unaware going into this battle for what is termed “Head and Neck Cancer” is the damage that radiation does to your body long term, and likely permanent. The radiation has caused damage to my salivatory glands, my taste buds, it has given my burning mouth syndrome, it has caused internal lymphedema, and fibrosis in my neck. They are also monitoring my thyroid as well for potential long term damage. It can also cause damage to my jaw line, and requires additional treatments when removing teeth, because the jaw bone can start to deteriorate ( I am currently dealing with this right now, and they are unsure if it is damage from the radiation or not). Even though my cancer treatment has completed, I am on continuous treatments and monitoring due to the radiation damage, and also observation to my tongue and throat base to make sure they did not miss anything, since my primary cancer was never found. I have Physical Therapy to treat the Fibrosis, I have in home compression treatment for the Fibrosis and Lymphedema, and likely to need Hyperbaric Chamber treatment for the abscessed tooth, to avoid the Osteoradionecrosis (the deterioration of the jaw bone).