The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Willoughby woman is Tribe bat girl for day
A Willoughby resident and cancer survivor was honorary bat girl for Mother’s Day.
Willoughby resident and cancer survivor Jennifer Buckland was selected as the Indians’ honorary bat girl for Mother’s Day and threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the game against the Royals.
Three years ago, Jennifer Buckland was blindsided by the news.
She was 40, and her doctor told her it was time to schedule a mammogram. It was later revealed she had breast cancer.
“There’s talk about making age 50 for when women should get their first mammogram,” said Buckland, a Willoughby resident. “If that were the case, I might not be here today.”
She underwent chemotherapy, and at age 43 she’s cancer-free. With husband Erik and daughter Ava, 9, and Zack, 5, she’s “thriving.”
“I don’t like the words cancer survivor,” she said. “I’m thriving, not surviving.”
Buckland has been a physical therapist at the Cleveland Clinic’s Euclid branch the past 13 years. Since her cancer diagnosis, she’s been involved with marketing for breast cancer awareness. Buckland was also selected to participate in a research study that provided early-stage breast cancer patients with the opportunity to wear a cooling cap during chemo treatment to prevent hair loss.
By participating in the cooling cap research study, Buckland opened up the possibility for other cancer survivors to prevent hair loss. The results of this research have been published, and the cooling cap is now recognized as an FDA-approved device.
“I think (the cooling cap) is important because it’s one less thing people with cancer have to let go,” said Buckland. “People have an emotional attachment to their hair, and hair loss usually signals something’s going on.”
Because of her efforts, Buckland was selected as the Indians’ honorary bat girl on May 13 for Mother’s Day and threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the game against the Royals.
“When (the Indians) called with the news, I was shocked,” said Buckland, who was hand-picked by the Indians to represent the club. “There are so many thousand breast cancer survivors out there, and I’m really happy to be a representative.”
Buckland’s honor is truly elite. She was 1 of 30 honorary bat girls on Mother’s Day at ballparks across the country to be honored by Major League Baseball for its “Going to Bat Against Breast Cancer” initiative.
Her fight against cancer included undergoing a mastectomy with immediate breast tissue reconstruction, followed by a 12 weeks of chemotherapy.
It’s led to her being cancer free — according to her doctors — but not 100 percent free of the disease.
“Cancer is always haunting you,” said Buckland. “Every day it’s in the background. But right now I feel better than 100 percent. The last three years of my life have been on pause, but right I’m in a better place, and I’m more appreciative about things.”
Buckland grew up in the Cincinnati area then met her husband Erik, who’s from Northeast Ohio, when the two attended Miami (Ohio). She moved to the area in 2001, and quickly became a fan of the Cleveland pro sports teams even though she said her hometown Reds still hold “a small corner of my heart.”
“But Cleveland is just a great sports town,” she said.
Always athletic — she played softball, volleyball and was a cheerleader in high school — Buckland now runs half-marathons. She was motivated to run again during her four-hour chemo treatments. A fellow breast cancer survivor from Detroit she got to know through Facebook suggested she try half-marathons.
“With the online communities, it’s so different now then it was years ago,” said Buckland. “There’s so many ways to find support you need.”
Most recently, she ran in the Lake Health Running Series’ 10-Mile Drop race in Concord Township and Fairport Harbor. She’s set to run a half-marathon in the May 20 Cleveland Marathon.
“Still being able to physically move again ... yeah I’ll be pretty emotional crossing that finish line,” said Buckland. First though, she showed off her arm before the May 13 Indians game. As a former softball player, Buckland was confident. To prepare, she practiced throws from 60 feet, 6 inches (the distance from a major-league mound to home plate) with her next door neighbor Ian Meyenburg, who plays for the South High School baseball team.
“(The throw) was a little high and to the left but it made it to home plate!” said Buckland.