After an eighteen-month battle with ovarian
cancer, Shirley passed away in May 1972. She was 42 years
old. Neither her doctors nor her family were aware that
she had ovarian cancer as scientific knowledge was primitive
at that time, and the specific form of cancer was discovered
posthumously. Not one day has passed that she has not been
in our hearts and minds. Shirley was a person who truly
enjoyed her life, which included her three sons, her husband
and family. She saw life as an opportunity to laugh and
experience the joys it brought, including being a better
softball player than her brother. Her enthusiasm and intensity
lives on through her sons, their careers and families.
She chose to deal with her illness in
a most private way and with the courage that she exhibited
throughout her life. To say that her medical team was shooting
arrows in the dark in their efforts to deal with her cancer
is only to paraphrase the doctor's own words. In retrospect,
the lack of knowledge regarding the specific nature of her
illness is all the more frustrating because of the small,
though significant, steps science has taken in dealing with
ovarian cancer since 1972. This Memorial Fund is our small
way of supporting research as well as efforts to deal with
ovarian cancer and its impact on sufferers and their loved
ones.
