I was a high school honors student and member of the pompom squad in 1988.
One day during practice, when I was 15, I made hard contact with the basketball floor. A bruise developed on my left thigh that grew larger and darker each day, and it had a hard little bump in the middle.
My mom, who was a nurse, was concerned and took me to see my primary care physician. My doctor broke down and cried as he told my mom the news that the bloodwork indicated cancer. He referred me to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
At St. Jude, my doctor and nurses took the time to sit with me and explain the cancer and my treatment. They told me about every medication I would be taking and all the things I might experience. I’ll never forget the way they treated me with kindness and dignity, like I was their peer.
Always a voracious learner, I soaked this information up. At a time when I might have otherwise felt weak, they made me feel strong.
At St Jude, chemotherapy drove my cancer into a lasting remission, and the nurses I had come to love at St. Jude became my role models for life.
I became a nurse, and my career took me all the way to the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. I worked for many years as a hematology-oncology nurse specialist for active-duty and retired personnel, including our nation’s highest leaders.
Everything I knew of being a cancer patient at St. Jude, I used in treating my adult patients who had cancer. I took the time to explain every medication and every procedure so they could become advocates in their own care.
I relocated home to Tennessee not long before my beloved mom passed away in 2021. This loss was profound, and it led me to a bold career change that felt more like a homecoming.
Two years ago, I was hired by ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude, and have been working here ever since. I get to speak from experience to our supporters, letting them know just how much their donations make a difference in this world.
Because of St. Jude, I was able to graduate from high school and earn a doctorate degree and get married and have my two children. I have been able to pursue two career paths that have allowed me to give back. All of this was possible because I survived.
St. Jude means hope, and I feel blessed to be part of St. Jude helping the next generation of children being diagnosed with, and surviving, cancer.
With love and gratitude,
Angelique
