She died Tuesday, just before midnight, and for me it was like a star in the firmament had blinked out, as well. She was such a beacon, even to people like me who have never battled cancer. She wasn’t even 50. A single mom, she leaves a son.
I didn’t know her well. She was part of a group of breast cancer survivors in Woburn, Mass. called the Tanner Ta Tas – “Tanners” because the city was once host to numerous tanneries and “Ta Tas” because this group still has a sense of humor, regardless of what its members have endured. The Ta Tas were at her side until the end.
What I remember most about her is the night she appeared at a rally on Woburn Common to kick off breast cancer awareness month last October. She was battling Stage IV cancer that had spread to her brain but she insisted on speaking, even though she had had chemotherapy that very day.
“Until there’s a cure that works for everyone, we all still have work to do,” she told the crowd.
Lisa was diagnosed in the spring of 2006, at age 42, and had a full mastectomy five months later. The cancer had already spread and in September she learned she had Stage IV cancer with liver and spleen involvement. She started a regimen that she followed for the rest of her life – regular chemotherapy, PET scans, MRIs and more. In 2008, she had brain surgery. Her husband had filed for divorce months earlier.
Still, in her profile on the Tanner Ta Ta website, she could say, “I love life and being with people.”
The Ta Tas are still helping her. They are sponsoring a raffle to help pay her expenses. Raffle tickets are $10 for two tickets to see the Red Sox vs. Yankees, July 7 at 7:15 p.m., Section 9, Box 96, Row QQ, Seats 3 and 4. Checks may be made payable to: Tanner Ta Ta Foundation, 8 Skyview Road, Woburn 01801. Winner will be drawn June 30.
She would have done the same for anyone in need.
I plan to keep a photo of her where I can see it regularly. We all need our warrior heroes.
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