On November 15, 2008, we received a call telling us Scott had been admitted to the hospital in Savannah, GA and was about to have an emergency appendectomy.  Little did we know, this was the beginning of the most dreaded and stressful year and a half of our entire family’s lives. The surgery seemed to go well; however, when he returned to the Doctor about a week later, instead of finding out when he would be able to return to work, he was told that he had “stage IV colon cancer”. They don’t like to speculate as to time, but two years was probably the maximum. Scott was 38 years old.  How could this possibly be happening? Screenings aren’t even suggested until the age of 50!

Scott was determined to do everything in his power to become cancer free.  He went to numerous cancer centers including, MCG Cancer Center in Augusta, GA and Memorial in Savannah where he received most of his treatments. In January, 2010, we were told the treatments were beginning to affect his nerves and the possibility of paralysis was great; therefore, these treatments had to be stopped. From there, we went to The Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL where we were told, again, that there was nothing more that could be done. Determined, we traveled to M.D. Anderson in Houston, TX where they shared information about a clinical trial that Scott was eligible for and could receive at University Hospital in Augusta, GA. On February 19, 2010, he began yet another chemotherapy session, but by April 16 that too had not proved to be of any help.  As a last ditch effort, Scott headed back to M.D. Anderson in Houston to see if they could provide any additional information on treatment.  The news was not good, they recommended he return home, start hospice care, and live what life he had left to the fullest.  He did just that, he lived life large and fought hard, but on June 3, 2010, just two months after his 40th birthday, Scott’s journey came to an end.

For Scott, the sole provider for his family, and unable to work, the financial burden of his diagnosis was unimaginable. There wasn’t financial assistance for healthcare available to a person his age. The help was there for children and older adults, but the “middle aged” group does not qualify. However, Scott was able to receive his Social Security Disability and, with a lot of help from family/friends, Scott was able to maintain a somewhat stable and normal (as possible) environment for his family.

Scott’s determination and refusal to allow others to believe he was sick comforted us and gave us all the strength to walk beside him on his path to the Promised Land. Scott’s unwavering faith impressed a sense of knowledge that we have yet to understand.  Losing his presence in our lives was a powerful blow to our family. The pain of watching this vibrant character succumb to such a horrible disease was difficult to process in our minds. So many questions would remain unanswered but the one that we had to answer ourselves was “what happens now?” Again we looked to Scott’s influence for an answer.

Scott dreamed of a day when there would be no “magic” age (50) for screenings. And that if any person is stricken by this disease, they will be able to LIVE life without the financial burden of treatment. Through his journey with this wretched disease, Scott and his friends grew more and more determined to help! It is now up to each of us to ensure his light continues to SHINE ON and carry out his dream to SUPPORT. EDUCATE. DETECT. CURE. 

We are so grateful for all of our friends and family and the support, financial and moral, that has been provided for us since the very beginning.  We would like to thank the RVA Beard League for hosting 2 championships with SFS as the beneficiary of proceeds.  Also, thanks to Help Save One of Our Own in Savannah, for the financial support with  travel expenses, medical co-pays, and much more, Wilmington Wishes on Wilmington Island for their fund raisers, and Coke of Augusta for their sponsorships.  Coke of Savannah (Scott’s employer) went above and beyond the call of duty to do everything in their power to help; we can’t thank them enough.