Back To My Roots

Today I was blessed to be in the presence of people I have seen in years, and I mean YEARS! After well over four years of being away from my home church, I made my return. Well first of all, let's go back a couple of years....

After years of bouncing around churches around the Valley, my family finally settled in at Mt. Carmel United Brethren Church in Fulks Run. For close to five years I called it my home church and planted my roots there. Mt. Carmel was the church I returned to that summer in 2003 when I gave my heart to Jesus and I was baptized in my neighbor's swimming pool (Yes, a swimming pool! The river was completely dried up that year!) the following summer by my pastor. During those five years my spirituality grew like a weed and I began to feel peace in my heart. I absolutely loved getting up on Sunday mornings and going to Sunday School and Church. The church became my family and I'll forever be bonded to those special people.

This morning as I walked into Mt. Carmel, my mind was flooded with happy memories. I started thinking about all my trips down the stairs to my classroom, all of the Christmas plays and songs that I led on the main stage, and all the people that had been there to support me during my crazy middle school and teenage years. I felt like I was going back in time to my childhood and adolescence. The church still looks exactly how I remember it, minus a few minor remodelings and up keeps that have been done. However, the people have not changed at all. There still the incredible people I remember them as. I was showered with hugs and kisses this morning and could not stop grinning.

Besides coming back to see all the people I haven't seen in years, there's another reason I came back on this particular day. My boss and former tennis coach, Neil Summers was the speaker this week. Usually I'm proof reading Neil's sermons at work and have only had the opportunity to hear him speak twice. Come to think of it, the last sermon I heard at Mt. Carmel was one of Neil's.

This past week, after making the decision to visit Mt. Carmel, I asked Neil what sermon he was planning on using. He told me that it was his "hunting sermon". I never asked to see or what it was about. However, as soon as he started preaching this morning, I realized that it was one of the sermons that I had proofread! I'll have to admit, Neil did one heck of a job, and it was much better hearing him give the sermon than reading it :)

Even though I really miss all of the people I left behind years ago, I know that I've found a permanent home at Singers Glen Baptist. When I started going to Singers Glen Baptist in September 2007, I knew it was where I belonged. In a way, it started a new chapter of my life and the start of the new family I was about to have in the upcoming years. At that point, Tyler and I had been together for two years, and two short years later I officially became a part of the family when he slipped a gorgeous sapphire and diamond ring on my finger.

I'm so happy where I'm at and am looking forward to many good years to come at Singers Glen Baptist. However, I'll never forget where my roots are planted.

Why I Relay

So, the last few weeks have been jam packed with Relay for Life. I'm by no means complaining. In fact, it gives me so much to look forward to after the long, hard days at school and work. I love getting around my committee members who are so full of life and passion about finding a cure for cancer! Just recently I was asked by the event Co-Chair to share why I Relay to put in the monthly newsletter. This really got me to thinking and reminiscing about why I'm so passionate about this event and finding a cure. So here's why I Relay...

This year is a very special year of Relay for Life for me. This year marks the tenth year I've been without one of the most amazing men in my life, my grandfather, whom I called my Papa. I was Papa's first granddaughter and was his only little girl until my sister came a year later. Being the first granddaughter, I always had a special relationship with him and knew I was the apple of his eye. His nickname for me was Gabby because I was a "Jabber Box" and never stopped talking. Because of my parents work, I basically lived with my grandparents every summer until I was five and continued staying with them for weeks during the summer when I entered school. I have such sweet and fond memories of the summers I helped Papa at the car lot he owned and swinging on the porch with him watching the sunset. As a little girl, I always dreamed of having my Dad and Papa both walk me down the aisle when I got married. Sadly, he'd never get the chance to do that.

 When I was seven or eight, my grandfather was diagnosed with colon cancer. After rounds of chemo and a few operations, he had won his battle with cancer. However, within a few months, he was battling for his life again with a recurrence of his colon cancer. The cancer eventually spread to his liver and throughout his body. By the time I was told of the cancer, he only had a few months to live. My memories of the last few months of his life are bitter sweet, yet very painful. I basically watched the cancer slowly kill him, which is something a nine year old should never have to see. And what's even worse is that I never got to say goodbye. The last time I saw him he was sound asleep and I was told not to wake him. I never got my last kiss, my last hug, my last I Love You, or my last sweet goodbye. My last goodbye came as my Dad was pulling me away from his casket.

My first Relay came exactly a month after the passing of my Papa, on my tenth birthday. I knew that it was going to be a rough night for my entire family, especially during the luminaria ceremony, but I couldn't be more excited about the event. My sister and I were the only children on the team, but our team members, who were my elementary school teachers, understood and knew that this would be a life changing event for us and welcomed us with open arms. I've never cried so much in my life as I did at my first luminaria ceremony. All the pain and hurt that I'd bottled up over the last year had finally escaped and I was ready to start healing. That night I promised God and myself that I wouldn't sit back and watch cancer take innocent lives. I was going to do something about it.

And here I am today, 10 years later, still Celebrating, Remembering, and Fighting Back. This year will be my 8th Relay, my 5th year as a Team Captain, and my 1st year as a Committee Member. I Relay because I never I don't want any granddaughter or daughter to ever know what it's like to not have that special man in their life walk them down the aisle. Even though Papa won't be there physically, I know he'll be right beside me in spirit and I can't wait to feel his prescence on September 10, 2011!

I know I've basically poured my heart out here, but I hope you now fully understand why I Relay and why I'm so passionate about finding a cure. Almost everyone I know has been affected by cancer in some way. If you aren't involved with Relay, I advise you to get a team started and do something about this awful disease! Don't stand back and watch it take innocent lives, you can make a difference! I truly believe that a cure will be found in my lifetime and I will be a part of finding a cure!

Blessings, Kelsey