Rebecca Sweigart

Caregiver

Our Ter

Ter was an amazing mother, wife, sister, daughter, friend. She just would light up a room when she walked in. There was something about her that made you feel like a better person just knowing her. 

She was diagnosed in November of 2007 with breast cancer. She had surgery and chemo and by November of 2008 she was doing well. For one week it appeared she was cancer free. Around Thanksgiving she wasn’t feeling well. Her arms ached, she was tired and not feeling good. She was depressed, how could this be, “I’ve been doing so well.” “Why am I so tired.” I told her you’ve been through so much, it’s fine, take it easy. You’ll be back to yourself, these things take time. But within a week, things got drastically worse and she had collapsed, throwing up blood and was admitted into the hospital. By December 5th, they had told us she had developed Leukemia, and within three days, by December 8th, my sister died. 

What! How could this be! She was the strong one in our family! How are we suppose to be here without her! We were in shock (my twin sister and I), especially when the doctor came out to us and said, “Your sister’s heart has stopped and we just looked at each other and said, well start it!” Unfortunately, they couldn’t. The Leukemia was aggressive, something that doesn’t happen in like 1-3% of cases. She had suffered from a blood clot to the lung and her blood could not flow, due to the progression of the Leukemia. It’s still a daily struggle. Our faith helps us through and keeps us grounded. I know that God has carried me so many days when I couldn’t walk on my own. Ter left behind a wonderful family and there are days that I miss her laugh, her warm smile, and her positive outlook on life. I’m grateful for having her in our lives for the short time we did, because I know I”m a better person because of her. And the saying is true…only the good die young. Ter was only 44 when she left this earth and went home.