I lost my eyesight; the tumor had pressed against my optic nerves causing me to become blind. But just because I lost my vision doesn’t mean I lost my vision for living.”Lindsey Jones, Cancer Survivor
HANCEVILLE – Wallace State Community College’s Common Read committee joined forces with the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life of Cullman County and held an event on March 25 at the Hanceville campus.
The students heard from UAH freshman and cancer survivor Lindsey Jones, of Gurley, who was almost 4 years old when she was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer which caused blindness, similar to a character in “The Fault in Our Stars.” Now a cancer survivor of almost 15 years, Jones shared her story with the students and members of the community as a Hero of Hope for the American Cancer Society.
“I lost my eyesight; the tumor had pressed against my optic nerves causing me to become blind,” said Jones, “but just because I lost my vision doesn’t mean I lost my vision for living. Just because you can’t see doesn’t mean you can’t accomplish in life,” she continued. “Last year I graduated from Madison County High School with honors in the top 10 percent of my class with straight A's. I currently attend the University of Alabama in Huntsville where my major is psychology and my minor is in music.”
During the program, Jones sang a beautiful song and the Nursing Department’s Kids on the Block puppetry program performed a couple of skits.
Students, faculty, staff and attendees visited booths that had been set up by the American Cancer Society and various Wallace State programs. They took part in games and activities, and had a chance to support the WSCC Relay for Life team’s fundraising efforts.
Fundraisers included meals from Dewey’s Cajun Shack food truck which will donate a portion of their proceeds from that day to the Wallace State Relay team.
The WSCC Relay for Life team offered a cupcake bar where participants chose the flavor of cupcake, icing and toppings to go on their treat.
Those wishing to purchase a luminary in honor or in memory of a loved one were able to do so at the event.
A quilt made from team T-shirts from the 2014 event was on display. There were opportunities to win it, along with a prize package for Dollywood. Both prizes will be given away at the May 1 Relay for Life of Cullman County event at the Cullman County Fairgrounds.
“There are four things that we strive for in Relay for Life; it’s our motto,” Jones explained. “We celebrate. We remember. We hope. We fight back. In celebrating, we celebrate more birthdays and we celebrate so that one day we will find a cure for cancer. We hope that we will find that cure for cancer and we hope for more birthdays in the future. We fight back because we want to face that terrible disease. We don’t want cancer to ruin our lives. We remember for the loss of those who have lost their lives to cancer.”
For more information about Relay for Life of Cullman County, visit RelayforLife.org/cullmanal or call Helen Allen at 256-709-4019.
