HOSPITALITY TENT DEDICATION BY DAUGHTER ARIANA
AND POEM BY DAUGHTER ALY

Ariana's Speech at the
Hospitality Area Dedication

Not a day has gone by in the past three and a half years that I have not thought about my mother. Some days are filled with laughter and sweet memories and other days with tears and longing.
I know I am not alone with my thoughts and most people here today have something similar to say about Sara Rose. She touched so many lives by sharing her own. Her happiness was measured by the happiness of those around her.
So when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in February 1996 her entire community was affected. Sara Rose did not deserve this. She had mammograms twice a year, routine check-ups and biopsies if necessary. And still, like her mother, also diagnosed at a young age, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
The statistics are there- the chance of developing invasive breast cancer at some time in a woman’s life about 1: 7 or 1: 8. Obviously the risk increases when there is a family history.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women except non-melanoma skin cancer and it is the second leading cause of death in women exceeded only by lung cancer.
Sara Rose took her cancer by the horns. Bilateral mastectomy, radiation therapy, chemotherapy and stem cell replacement. If her oncologist, Dr. John Costanzi offered treatment that would increase her chance of survival and improve her statistics rather than becoming one, she accepted it. So did her community of support.
This began at UTMB with a bilateral mastectomy. She viewed her postoperative days as an opportunity to introduce me to a medical resident. One morning as the doctors gathered outside her room reviewing her chart she roused me from sleep insisting that I brush my hair and put on some lipstick AS IF the surgical residents would be more interested in my lip color than her surgical wounds.
She interviewed doctors and she interviewed patients. She organized a viewing of all possible reconstructive techniques offered by the local plastic surgeons. Only those with good humor were allowed to attend.
She opted on treatment in Austin, so organized car trips began- thanks to Henry, BJ, Sally, Linda, Marilyn and others. Friday night dinners brought to the house- thanks to the Temple Sisterhood and Galveston Junior Leaguers. Get well cards made by her students and endless well wishes and prayers- thank you Galveston.
Throughout it all she remained so BRAVE, so OPTIMISTIC and even thankful. She was always able to think of ways that her situation could be worse and she remained appreciative of the things people did to improve her situation. She became a role model and mentor for the newly diagnosed; AUTHOR OF ‘HOW TO DO CANCER AND MAKE THE BEST OF IT!’  She turned this awful experience into something to share.
We are here today to share our stories about Sara Rose and remember someone who lost her physical battle against cancer but not her spirit.
Her smile, her love and her strength remain close to my heart and as the days and months go by this is what I will remember.
Thank you for your support here today. I know this would have made her happy.

An Ode to Sara
Aly Rose

An ode to Sara, and all those she loved
Who bless this day as she smiles from above.

Who have traveled by bus, plane, and car a like
To commemorate and remember a woman’s fight

With a disease no less, to breasts, you see
And all those who work to stay cancer free!

My mom was the type to laugh out loud,
To share her kisses, her hugs, and say she was proud
                                                        
Of her children, her colleagues, and her friends all around
Of their successes, their triumphs, and goodness abound

When the music was played, my mom would dance.
When the day would start, my mom took a chance

To sell a house, buy a dream, or make a fresh start
To build a new home and fulfill one’s heart.

Taking a closer look at what she stood for
Let us call to mind the children she taught and adored

So endless, so varied, “so many” she would say
Who make life worth living and rewarding each day

And indeed, in her life of giving and care
We can learn three lessons to stay aware.

Be patient with each other and find only the best
In moments, in people, and God’s many tests.

Wear a red hat when rain pours that day,
Don’t give into clouds, frowns, or what people say.

Sing your tune now and join the parade
Because the band marches on and the song fades away.

So jog, leap, and sprint at the start of the gun…
Know today’s race she also would run.

Fill the course with your puma, addidas and nike-shod feet
Sweat bullets and buckets and finish this meet!
____________________________________________
A special thanks to those who loved my mom and knew how
grand she was, who organized this event, and remind all of us today of her fighting spirit.