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A profile in courage, strength and hope

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By Caitlin Bittner

As the month of August approaches, Prairie du Chien begins to set its sights on the annual Great River Relay for Life. The event, which will be held on Aug. 1, from 3 to 10 p.m., at the Prairie du Chien High School, helps area residents who have been affected by cancer find support and raise money for their cause.

It seems that nowadays there are very few people who aren’t touched by the damage diseases like cancer can cause. In thinking about the Relay for Life, people remember both the fighters and the caregivers.

For the survivors of cancer, there is a will to live and thrive. “You never stop fighting,” said Cindy Hertrampf, a survivor of 21 years.

In 1994, Cindy was diagnosed with breast cancer. “I was 36 years old when I found the lump. I went in and they told me to wait until I was 40.”

After four years, the lump had grown and Cindy wanted to have it checked out again. “They sent me home, but I got a call asking me to turn around and come back because there was a shadow on the x-ray.”

That was when, as Cindy described, it was time for her to run the gamut of treatment options. “It was stage II to III,” she explained.

At the time, Cindy thought of herself as a wife, mother and teacher. In order to undergo the surgeries she would need to save her life, she would have to spend a lot of time away from each of those things. “When one person gets cancer, the whole family gets cancer. They fight together. I had five surgeries in seven months. I was very lucky that we caught it early. It was starting to metastasize inside itself.”

With the surgeries also came a considerable amount of recovery time. “I was so grateful to everyone. I have a wonderful, supportive husband and there were so many people who helped us. People who brought food over to our house so [Don] didn’t have to worry or [who] took the girls to the pool when I couldn’t,” Cindy remarked.

Years later, Cindy continues to pay forward the kindness she received. “The first thing I do when I hear that someone is having surgery is take over a meal or a gift certificate,” she commented.

Her roles have changed slightly as a retired teacher and a mother of two married daughters, Megan Walhood and Katie Stock. Although she is not one to toot her own horn, she said that in her time at the Prairie du Chien School District, she taught about 4,000 students.

With so many learning from her, there is no doubt that she has had a tremendous impact on the local area. She even remembers being at the first Relay for Life held in Prairie du Chien. “There are so many people [at the Relay]. It gives you strength and can give you hope.”

Cindy added that it is very important to come to events like these and support the fighters and the families in the battle. “We just don’t know whose dollar it will be that finds the cure. We need to fight together.”

Words of wisdom that Cindy would impart upon anyone with cancer are charged with everything she embodies—courage, strength and hope. “It is survivable. For me, it’s positive thinking. My faith is strong and I’ve learned that you can’t worry about everything. You need to enjoy every day. Find a good support system and know that you don’t stand alone. That’s why the Relay is so important. It’s an event that reminds us that we do not stand alone.”

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