~Cancer Crusader Eve Cunningham~
Estrella Community rallies for Cancer Crusader Eve Cunningham
Submitted to Life in Estrella Magazine - October 2014, Page 21
Written by Jennifer Barber
Submitted to Life in Estrella Magazine - October 2014, Page 21
Written by Jennifer Barber
Eve’s day started like any other. Two years ago, the working mom of two teenage boys squeezed in time for a routine adjustment with her chiropractor. Far from routine, though, was leaving with a broken sternum. “I had never broken a bone in my life and here, the strongest bone in my body, was easily broken.” Little did Eve know, her routine appointment would be the beginning of a life-changing journey strengthening her faith and engaging the power of love from her friends and family.
Eve Cunningham has touched many Estrella lives through educating our little ones whether during her time at Estrella Mountain Preschool or at The Illiad Academy of the Odyssey Academy down the hill.
At just 43 years of age, Eve was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer affecting her bones called Multiple Myeloma IGA. “My shoulder and arm bones were filled with tiny little holes they called a “moth eaten” appearance and it was cancer.” How and why Eve fell victim to this cancer remains a mystery.
She turned to Cancer Treatment Centers of America for help. She journals, “I remember lying in my hospital bed exhausted thinking I just can’t do this anymore and I would begin singing in my head the song, ‘Jesus Take the Wheel.’”
Chemo. Radiation. Countless surgeries. Eve opted for a stem cell transplant knowing the odds of infection, time off from work, and financial stability were all at stake. “The community support I received was absolutely amazing! It brings tears to my eyes. I felt so loved and cared for!”
Hundreds turned out for a fundraiser at our local yogurt shop for Eve. A child at her school made and sold rubber band bracelets raising $100. Another friend held a wine tasting event and silent auction filling a restaurant to standing room only.
Her parents and closest friends tended to her and her daily needs around her home. One friend arranged a meal schedule. Others stayed with her around the clock… even when the pain and anxiety were too much to bear in the middle of the night.
“I feel so blessed because I lived and I got to see and feel and hear directly how much I really was loved by the way my family and friends and the community rallied around me,” Eve thinks back on her fight to survive.
This doesn’t just happen to anyone.
Eve is a gentle and caring soul.
On a warm Saturday morning this summer, now cancer free, Eve dropped by Oasis Bagels to pick up breakfast. It must have taken her more than 15 minutes to reach the register - saying “hi” to each person stopping her to find out how she was doing. She’s loved by many and we’ve been rooting for her though Facebook updates, words of mouth, and silent thoughts and prayer. She credits her “village” of family, friends, supportive employers, and Cancer Treatment Centers of America for her survival.
“It is too early to know why my life’s path had to take this turn. However, I know at some point it will be made clear to me. In the meantime, I just plan on continuing to love life and the wonderful people in it who make life worth living!”
Eve was kind to do a Q & A with me for another organization I'm honored to volunteer for called Estrella Cancer Crusaders. Eve details how her faith and fitness contributed to her survival, as well. To read more, please visit our website, and go to "Faces of Estrella."
Eve Cunningham has touched many Estrella lives through educating our little ones whether during her time at Estrella Mountain Preschool or at The Illiad Academy of the Odyssey Academy down the hill.
At just 43 years of age, Eve was diagnosed with a rare blood cancer affecting her bones called Multiple Myeloma IGA. “My shoulder and arm bones were filled with tiny little holes they called a “moth eaten” appearance and it was cancer.” How and why Eve fell victim to this cancer remains a mystery.
She turned to Cancer Treatment Centers of America for help. She journals, “I remember lying in my hospital bed exhausted thinking I just can’t do this anymore and I would begin singing in my head the song, ‘Jesus Take the Wheel.’”
Chemo. Radiation. Countless surgeries. Eve opted for a stem cell transplant knowing the odds of infection, time off from work, and financial stability were all at stake. “The community support I received was absolutely amazing! It brings tears to my eyes. I felt so loved and cared for!”
Hundreds turned out for a fundraiser at our local yogurt shop for Eve. A child at her school made and sold rubber band bracelets raising $100. Another friend held a wine tasting event and silent auction filling a restaurant to standing room only.
Her parents and closest friends tended to her and her daily needs around her home. One friend arranged a meal schedule. Others stayed with her around the clock… even when the pain and anxiety were too much to bear in the middle of the night.
“I feel so blessed because I lived and I got to see and feel and hear directly how much I really was loved by the way my family and friends and the community rallied around me,” Eve thinks back on her fight to survive.
This doesn’t just happen to anyone.
Eve is a gentle and caring soul.
On a warm Saturday morning this summer, now cancer free, Eve dropped by Oasis Bagels to pick up breakfast. It must have taken her more than 15 minutes to reach the register - saying “hi” to each person stopping her to find out how she was doing. She’s loved by many and we’ve been rooting for her though Facebook updates, words of mouth, and silent thoughts and prayer. She credits her “village” of family, friends, supportive employers, and Cancer Treatment Centers of America for her survival.
“It is too early to know why my life’s path had to take this turn. However, I know at some point it will be made clear to me. In the meantime, I just plan on continuing to love life and the wonderful people in it who make life worth living!”
Eve was kind to do a Q & A with me for another organization I'm honored to volunteer for called Estrella Cancer Crusaders. Eve details how her faith and fitness contributed to her survival, as well. To read more, please visit our website, and go to "Faces of Estrella."