, d a D y M o r e H y M years we’ve seen modern medicine expand to By Kris Welcome new heights, but we still have so many ailments Cancer strikes many famstriking our societies ilies with unbearable grief and that haven’t seen a great strain. Pancreatic cancer aclevel of advancement. counts for 3% of all cancers and Cancer has caused me 7% of cancer deaths accordto experience the greating to Cancer.org. November est emotional pain that is a time to raise awareness I’ve come to know yet. on the devastation brought It was Christmas break on by pancreatic and pros2010 and I was a freshtate cancer. Over the past few
FIGHTING FOR JUSTICE SINCE 1959
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FIRE AND EXPLOSIONS CHEMICAL & TOXIC XPOSURE BURNS AND ELECTROCUTIONS 18 WHEELER ACCIDENTS CRIMINAL WILLS AND SUCCESSIONS
Kris Welcome pictured with his dad, C. L. Russell, J r.
man in college when I got a phone call no child ever wants to receive. My dad had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and it didn’t seem promising. At 18, I had been forced to deal with a situation I didn’t think I would deal with until years later. The reality of what was happening really placed a damper on my life. I felt that it was impossible to sustain my sanity with my studies knowing that my dad was fighting the battle of his life at the same time. I felt guilty for not being able to do anything and I couldn’t stand to think of the possibility that my dad wouldn’t be around to witness my greatest accomplishments. Although cancer affects the
patient directly, the emotional toll on the families who care for them is also great. My father lived over two years past his expectancy and showed me that there is life in positivity. He didn’t complain about his pain and chose to continue working, while carrying a case that controlled a constant drip of chemotherapy drugs and underwent radiation. Watching him maintain a positive lifestyle through the ugliness he was living spoke volumes of his character. Growing up, my dad often told me that a man’s strength is measured by how strong he is in his weakest moments. As a young man witnessing his journey, he became a point of validity in getting me to understand his life lessons. I marveled at how easy he made
NOVEMBER 2014 • Volume 2 • Number 4