Meet families impacted by Inheritance of Hope!
“We knew about Inheritance of Hope (IoH) for a while but never realized how incredible it was until we were a part of it,” said Jay Maier. Jay, his wife Tara, and their five children lived near IoH Legacy Retreat® Director Jill Thompson in Rochester, Minn. Tara said her family prayed for the families that went on Legacy Retreats® but didn’t expect to attend one themselves.
Phyllis Young learned about Inheritance of Hope when a local North Carolina television station featured the organization. She immediately knew her family would enjoy going to an IOH Legacy Retreat®.
“I knew we took things for granted and we needed to take some time to step back and enjoy being a family,” she said.
When Amy Martin from North Carolina was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2007, her two oldest children, John and Jennifer, were respectively off at college and working in California. But her youngest, Lyndi, was 7 years old and still lived at home. “She has grown up with the ups and downs of the cancer world,” Amy said. “You worry about
Amanda Hichkad has stage IV cancer that started as cervical cancer in 2008 but spread to her spine, lungs, and liver. She’s been through surgeries, radiation, and 13 rounds of chemotherapy, and she visits doctors several times a week to keep the illness under control.
That’s all in addition to being the mother of three boys
Mike Coleman wears a patch to treat tumors in his brain that his 5-year-old daughter, Leah, calls his “snow cap.”
Leah has started kindergarten, joined the Girl Scouts, and loves dancing and Disney princesses. Although she may not know the technical term for her dad’s Novocure device, the Colemans from Lock Haven, Penn., started making efforts to
Last year the Kramers from Indiana went on their first family trip: an all-expenses-paid Legacy Retreat® in Orlando. Nolan, 5, and Aryka, 3, still talk about
Lori Newcome didn’t know about Huntington’s Disease until her father-in-law was diagnosed when she was a teenager.
The genetic disease affects one in 10,000 Americans, according to the Huntington’s Disease Society of America. It damages brain cells and involves a variety of physical and emotional symptoms as it slowly progresses.
Four years ago, Lori's husband, Brian, began acting differently and was forced
After nearly 18 years of marriage, Matt Herbster didn’t know how much more time he had with his high school sweetheart, Julie. She was 38 years old when she was diagnosed with colon cancer last year, and the disease quickly spread to her liver.
Lorenza Guereca doesn’t often let other people see what a challenge living with cancer has been.
She said strong faith keeps her positive after years of treatments. Lorenza, who lives with her husband and daughter in Lafayette, In., said she doesn’t dwell on her illness and makes the effort to maintain an optimistic attitude despite multiple diagnoses, hair loss, and hospital visits.
“You always see me with a smile,” she said. “I don’t think people realize how stressful it is.”
The stress began when
“There’s a really big need to tell your story,” said Julie Hull of Eagan, Minn.
Julie’s husband, Ken, was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer after a blood clot was found in his calf three years ago. Ken was a long-distance runner, and the cancer stunned Julie and their 12-year-old son, Sam.
“It drew us into a totally different plane,” Julie said.
Soon the Hulls were making routine hospital visits. Ken underwent 18 rounds of chemotherapy, 10 rounds of radiation, and two brain surgeries.
