Faith and family; the two components that carried Kathryn Rucker along her breast cancer journey.
Kathryn believes she’s not the only one who went through breast cancer. Her husband Derrick and sons Aaron and Landon did as well.
One of the first things Derrick and Kathryn decided to do after receiving the diagnosis was to tell their sons. Derrick sat down with Aaron and Landon, who were 11 and 7 at the time, and verbadtimly said, “Your mom has breast cancer.”
“That conversation with the boys was hard at first, but that was another one of those situations where we made it through,” Derrick said.
The boys tearfully asked, “Is mom going to die?”
Derrick described that conversation as a “sink or swim moment” that made him “man up” as the covering of their home. He gave their sons the liberty to express their emotions while reassuring them that their mom would be fine.
The boys had an example of their parents constantly praying, so they knew to hold on to their faith during Kathyrn’s treatment. Three days after receiving the diagnosis, Aaron told Kathryn that he prayed about her having breast cancer and God told him that she would be healed.
“I truly stand on the fact that God loves me more than anything else, and I know He loves my kids the same way,” Kathyrn said. “I just didn’t think God would lie to my son, so that was the moment when I truly believed that I was going to be healed.”
There were also quiet moments that made Derrick draw from his faith. He knew that he could have sunk into depression if he didn’t remember who he was and who was in control of their situation.
“The spirit of love took over,” Derrick said. “I love my wife. We’ve been together since we were kids.”
That love drove him to accept the role as Kathryn’s primary caregiver with ease. It also motivated him to be the best leader and father for Aaron and Landon.
“I said I have to be strong for the boys,” Derrick said. “I have to be strong for Kathy.”
Derrick had to take responsibility for things he and his wife normally did together like making sure their sons ate and did their homework. He also had to ensure that Kathryn was comfortable and took her medicine.
“Even though this felt like a tragedy that happened in the house, I felt like it was my responsibility to keep things going as normally as possible,” Derrick said.
Kathryn knew there was a lot on Derrick’s shoulders, but he remained faithful to his family. He wasn’t alone as family and friends stepped up to help when able including Kathryn’s mother who stayed with them for a month.
“During those moments, it felt heavy but it didn’t last long,” Derrick said. “I gave it to my creator, and He fixed it.”
Caleb Britt 