|
|||||||||||||
Printer-Friendly
Email this Story
Post a Comment (0)
Friends help teacher with cancer
Shelly Scheyder's state of mind is unbelievably positive.
Physically, her body is not doing as well.
The South Riding resident was diagnosed with kidney cancer last month, and she has been sick and unable to work since fall.
Since then, she's lost 40 pounds. Her voice is shaky and weak, her sight is fading and her legs are sore.
Even while faced with such adversity, Scheyder's sense of optimism still dominates her personality.
"I'm not unhappy. That's the important thing," she said. "I'm still positive. I try to make up jokes whenever possible."
Scheyder's outlook on life is infectious, her friends say, and she has always been well-liked in her community and at Little River Elementary School, where she has taught first and second grades for the last seven years.
Now, friends and co-workers have come together to plan a silent auction fundraiser March 26 to help offset her medical costs.
"She didn't want us to do it," said Scheyder's friend and fellow Little River teacher, Julie Ciardiello. "I told her, 'I don't care -- we're doing it anyway.'
“She just kept going to doctor after doctor and getting one blow after another. It finally got to the point where we said, 'You need Mayo.'"
Mayo is the clinic in Jacksonville, Fla., where Scheyder, 46, will be going for treatment on March 27.
The money from the fundraiser -- which will be March 26 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Freedom High School in South Riding -- will help with the expense of going to the medical facility, Ciardiello said.
The auction will include items like tickets to sporting events, a condo rental in Florida and even outings with Little River teachers to take children to the movies or out to dinner.
"Everyone has stepped up," Ciardiello said. "A lot of people know [Scheyder] and everyone has good things to say about her. She's very positive in spite of it all."
For example, in a recent e-mail to friends, Scheyder sent around a link to a joke Halloween costume, "Miss Diagnosed."
That is something Scheyder can relate to.
For months she visited doctors and specialists and underwent countless tests, but they were unable to diagnose her.
She was finally told she has kidney cancer, but doctors don't think that is the source of most of her symptoms.
Since the summer, Scheyder has been experiencing leg pains. Those progressively worsened and turned to numbness all along her left side.
Then, the muscles in her throat atrophied, making it difficult for her to talk. Her lungs are now operating at only 50 percent capacity, she said.
Her husband, Mark, a minister at New Life Christian Church in Centreville, and her three children, Megan, 18, Riley, 14, and Chloe, 9, have been there to support her, Scheyder said.
Also, her neighbors, friends and family members have been there through her struggle.
"I'm just amazed at how God can work through people," she said. "It's the people around you that show how real that can be."
Scheyder herself is no stranger to helping others. She went on several missions to Haiti with members of her church over the past few years.
"We worked there bringing medical equipment for the handicapped," she said. "We would also go down to the village with meals every night for the elderly, and we worked at a nearby orphanage."
Scheyder's daughter, Megan, a senior at Freedom High School, also has stepped up to help. She is planning an awareness walk at her school to recognize her mom March 29.
Scheyder said all the support helps her remain positive even though doctors have yet to figure out most of what is going on.
"The tricky part is that while you're going through it, you don't understand. The understanding comes later," she said. "My faith keeps me alive, but when you have support in going through something, that also helps."
To help or for more information about the Scheyder family and fundraiser, e-mail scheyderfamilyfund@yahoo.com or visit www.scheyderfamilyfund.com.
Contact the reporter at ecoe@timespapers.com
You must be logged in to post a comment.