Kelsey's Story

Kelsey’s Story

On February 4, 2008, we learned that our 14 year-old daughter, Kelsey Wynne Harris, had a brain tumor. She underwent surgery on February 13. A week later, our worst fears were confirmed, her tumor was the most aggressive form of brain cancer in the worst possible location. Soon after, Kelsey became a patient at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, TN. Kelsey began a treatment plan consisting of chemotherapy and radiation.

Throughout the treatment and beyond, Kelsey exhibited an amazing attitude. She was always smiling, joking, and laughing. This caught the attention of many of the doctors, nurses, and staff members at St. Jude. One day while waiting for a radiation treatment, a St. Jude staff member told Kelsey she was impressed by her joyful attitude. Kelsey responded by saying, “Life is more interesting when you’re happy.” This wasn’t just a slogan, or a random statement from Kelsey. This was the way she had always lived her life and even cancer didn’t change her philosophy. As a Christian, Kelsey had great faith in the promises of our Lord. Her confidence in Him allowed her to freely live her life despite her disease.

Several months later, I was teaching a Bible class about overcoming the trials of life. In that lesson, I talked about Kelsey’s wonderful attitude. When I mentioned the phrase, “Life is more interesting when you’re happy” I added that I thought it would make a great T-shirt. Unknown to us, some of the folks in the class decided to make my dream a reality. Shortly thereafter, a box filled with Kelsey quote shirts arrived at our door. We were all thrilled to have them, and Kelsey was astonished that her statement had found it’s way onto a shirt! Our friends behind the production of the shirts also told us that several of them had been sent to other families dealing with cancer. For us, that news was even more wonderful than receiving them ourselves. This also led many of our friends and family to request shirts for themselves.

Sadly, cancer claimed the life of our daughter on April 6, 2009. She was sixteen years old. She lived her philosophy until the very end. She had a tea party with her sister and grandmother two days before she died. The night before she passed, she was laughing so hard with some friends that she could not catch her breath! She loved life and she loved to be happy!

Kelsey wrote a set of resolutions three months before she died. In them, Kelsey shared with us her secret of how to live a happy, interesting life. To celebrate her life and attitude, we have created the foundation to share her inspiration to other families dealing with cancer. We will send Kelsey quote shirts free of charge to other families dealing with cancer. We hope to create a scholarship to help students who want to pursue a career in writing, which was her dream. We will also sponsor a camper every year at the camp Kelsey attended for eight years.

You can help the foundation reach these goals in a couple of ways. You can purchase Kelsey quote shirts for you and your family. In the fall of 2009, we will be selling a cookbook to raise money for the foundation. Soon we will be adding other exciting features including an email list and the ability to make donations through Paypal.