Inspirational Women

I am so lucky to be surrounded by some extraordinarily exceptional women in my life.  My best friends make me want to be a better person because they are so awesome.  My mom is such an amazing person, she makes me feel like I could do anything because she did.  The women in mine and Andy's family have all been amazing.  I graduated nursing schools with a huge class of extraordinary ladies (and a couple men) that have become so influential in our career that I am astounded. 

With all these women surrounding me I chose one to tell you about:

Jennifer is one of the strongest people I have ever met.  I first met her 7 years ago when I started nursing school.  She is such a beautiful girl.  As a single mom she started a nursing program and thrived.  She was going to be an amazing nurse.  In our second year of nursing school, after a self breast exam, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.  She was young, 28, in school, a mom, with cancer.

She went through chemo and  a double mastectomy without even skipping a beat in school.  She was there for everything.  She did graduate and went on to be an amazing oncology nurse.  But her story didn't stop with her beating cancer and becoming a nurse.  She went back to school and became a nurse practitioner, but now also runs the Bakersfield chapter of the YSC- young survival coalition, a group that supports young women with cancer.  They also fund-raise to help find cures for breast cancer.

She is an inspiration because through a devastating diagnosis, she thrived.  She became and advocate for others, a supporter and an inspiration.

This is yet another day to follow the promts from SITS.  I am desperately hoping to win a washer dryer (Thelma and Louis) from SITS, Westar, Standards of Excellence appliances and Florida Builder Appliances, so I am following their blogging prompts this week which have turned out to be fun!