Yahoo! Women Who Shine

September 14, 2012
By

Meet my sister-in-law Melanie. I have known her for 13 years and I can honestly say we are friends – good friends. She is a wonderful wife and mother to four great children. Three are boys that are all under the age of 8.

I have blogged about her before when we first got “The News“. You see this last November, Melanie had a seizure in her bed early one morning. As a result, she had an MRI that showed a tumor in her brain. The news rocked our family to the core.

About Yahoo! Women Who Shine:


Yahoo! Shine wants to celebrate the women in your social circles who are blazing new trails, changing lives, and doing extraordinary things every day. Help give these inspiring women the recognition they deserve by nominating them for Women Who Shine. The woman who receives the most votes by the end of the program will win a $10,000 cash prize* (see terms and conditions).

You can nominate a women in your social circle in the following 8 categories:

  • Activists
  • Athletes
  • Entrepreneurs
  • Healers
  • Public Services
  • Mothers
  • Survivors
  • Teachers


My Yahoo! Women Who Shine Nominee

After an official diagnosis, stage 2 Astrocitoma mixed Oligodendroglioma, and two brain surgeries, Melanie is now tumor free but not cancer free. Melanie’s story, is not one of a victim though – it is one of challenge, growth, survival, love and best of all – hope. This is why I am nominating my sister-in-law Melanie for the Women Who Shine contest.

Three Amazing Things Learned From the Brain Tumor:

  • God and family are what really matters
  • The dreams that you have for your family need to be sought after – proactive living
  • Getting healthy (mind and body) is vital

Melanie will never be “cancer-free”. Her life expectancy has improved but this tumor can eventually take her young life. But our greatest prayer and hope is that the tumor never grows back. Despite this unexpected medical crisis, Melanie has grown into a stronger woman – her faith, family relationships, and health have taken a front seat in her life. She is not a victim – she is a survivor.

 

This is why she should win in the Women Who Shine contest, don’t you agree?

Won’t you please take a moment of your time to vote for Melanie Kabo

 

 

You can find Melanie at Bucket List Family to learn more about her story.

 


*Disclosure: I was compensated for this blog post while participating in the SocialMoms blogging program. The opinions and ideas expressed here are my own. To read more posts on this topic, click here.

LaVonne

Seattle area family blogger LaVonne Long is the author and editor of Long Wait For Isabella. Traveling North America with her husband, she is a Christian homeschool mother of two.

Tags: , , , , , ,

23 Responses to Yahoo! Women Who Shine

  1. Bonnie on September 14, 2012 at 11:24 am

    God is Amazing!
    Bonnie recently posted..Frankenweenie Sweepstakes, Coloring Pages and So Much More!My Profile

    • LaVonne on September 14, 2012 at 9:04 pm

      Yes, He is Bonnie! Thanks for coming by.

  2. Gena
    Twitter: Lazcano
    on September 14, 2012 at 12:48 pm

    I’m so glad to hear she is doing okay and relying on God. That is the most important thing of all.

    My father in law had a brain tumor removed 10 years ago. He doesn’t have cancer, but the after affects of something like that are huge. God bless your sister in law and your entire family!
    Gena recently posted..Ft. Worth: Attend the Bright Horizons Renovation Celebration!My Profile

    • LaVonne on September 14, 2012 at 9:05 pm

      Wow, ten years later? That is great Gena. Thank you for kind words.

  3. Kathleen on September 14, 2012 at 2:18 pm

    How scary and she is very brave to not give up on life and be able to see lessons in her life experiences, great nominee!
    Kathleen recently posted..REVIEW: Tenzi Dice Game–No More Taking Turns!My Profile

    • LaVonne on September 14, 2012 at 9:07 pm

      We are hoping she will win! :) Thanks, Kathleen for stopping by. I appreciate it.

  4. melissa on September 14, 2012 at 6:34 pm

    That is so scary. I am so glad she is doing okay and will continue praying!
    melissa recently posted..Saturday Top Five Laughs- Come join Our Blog Hop!My Profile

    • LaVonne on September 14, 2012 at 9:08 pm

      I sure appreciate that Melissa. Prayer really does work. We have learned that through this trial for sure.

  5. Katie Smith
    Twitter: Smith
    on September 14, 2012 at 6:42 pm

    How sweet to think of your sister in law that way. Its great to marry into a family where you can really make a good friend out of it.
    Katie Smith recently posted..Halloween ice boxMy Profile

  6. Liza @ Views From the 'Ville
    Twitter: Coulter
    on September 14, 2012 at 7:46 pm

    What a touching story! I would say she definitely shines and definitely deserves to win. Good luck to her in the contest, and prayers for the entire family.
    Liza @ Views From the ‘Ville recently posted..Our Nickelodeon Big Help Book Drive Book Donation #NickCFKMy Profile

    • LaVonne on September 14, 2012 at 9:09 pm

      Thank you Liza. I am going to add a vote link to this post once Yahoo Shine confirms that she has accepted her nomination. I am excited for her chance to win. God is good!

  7. amber
    Twitter: whitehead
    on September 15, 2012 at 7:59 am

    Good Luck.
    amber recently posted..Fall Gardening With Miracle-GroMy Profile

  8. Michelle on September 17, 2012 at 10:17 pm

    Its great to marry into a family where you can really make a good friend out of it.Its a great and touching kind of stories..

  9. Kim on September 18, 2012 at 9:14 pm

    AH!!! I love Melanie!!! Any help you need, getting this out there, just let me know…
    Kim recently posted..Travalo GIVEAWAY by Rafflecopter…My Profile

  10. Sukhmandir Kaur on September 19, 2012 at 10:05 am

    A friend’s granddaughter was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor just after her second birthday. She was given 6 months to live with radiation which would offer no hope of cure. Instead they took her immediately to Hippocrates Institute for 3 weeks. She has been on exclusively raw foods (no fruit because sugar feeds tumors) for 3 1/2 years and is healthy although there is an affect of the tumor on her coordination. She is the only one alive out of 2400 diagnosed at that time. She has been under physicians care the entire time and has had laser light frequency treatments and turbsonic sound frequency treatments almost daily for a couple of years. A group of us have have been praying daily for her as well. There is hope. Keep praying.

  11. Holly (Woman Tribune)
    Twitter: WomanTribune
    on September 19, 2012 at 2:33 pm

    It is so terrifying to see a loved one going through such a terrible illness, but it’s great that you and your family have found ways to come out of this experience stronger. Good luck with the Yahoo Women Who Shine contest!
    Holly (Woman Tribune) recently posted..8 Classic Over-the-Top Films About Mental IllnessMy Profile

  12. Melly Schug on September 19, 2012 at 7:16 pm

    She is such a survivor. I hope she continue to be doing fine!
    Let’s just keep praying.

  13. Beatriz on September 20, 2012 at 2:57 am

    Continue to pray…I really appreciate this inspiring stories…Hope your doing fine..

  14. Maria (Mammahomemaker) on September 20, 2012 at 4:51 am

    I’m the daughter of a survivor myself. God works wonders when you whole-heartedly believe. I am so glad that she is doing better. Just keep the faith! I will be praying for you al!
    Maria (Mammahomemaker) recently posted..Taking The Leap For a Healthier Me~Nutrisystem DMy Profile

  15. AlannaB on September 22, 2012 at 6:02 am

    Voted! Prayers for her and your family!
    AlannaB recently posted..New Baby Celebration Giveaway!My Profile

  16. [...] please don’t forget to pray for my sister in law Melanie. Her latest PET Scan showed residual tumor in her brain. It is not the news we had been praying [...]

  17. [...] the Brain Cancer Awareness section of the CafePress website. As you all know, my sister in law is fighting brain cancer. {I need to give you all the latest update!} I finally picked this [...]

  18. [...] California when we heard the news, a brain tumor update and then I even nominated her for the Yahoo! Women Who Shine contest. (She was the runner up in her category! Thanks for voting for [...]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badge