Mom in 4th cancer fight
Friends of Valencia resident hosting benefit in her honor
Single mother Jennifer Kennedy has heard, “You have cancer,” more than once in her life.
She was first told in 1997, and now, for the fourth time, she is on the fight to get rid of her cancer once again.
“My world turned upside down,” she said. “Before all of this, I was trying to start my own business.
Now, literally, everything just stopped.”
Kennedy, who lives in Valencia, was first diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 32 and was in remission for 19 years before cancer returned. In 2017, she was told she had non-Hodgkin lymphoma, cancer that occurs in the lymphatic system due to the body producing too many white blood cells.
Then, this summer, Kennedy was told her breast cancer had returned, but this time at stage four.
“In 2018, I was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer, which means it spread throughout my body like in my lymph nodes, brain and my spine,” she said.
She had also complained of a backache, which doctors found out stemmed from a tumor that fractured her spine as a result of the fastspreading cancer.
At this time, Kennedy is undergoing physical therapy and receives home visits from nurses. Soon, she will start radiation treatment and
then chemotherapy for the rest of her life, she added.
With an ongoing battle against cancer, she has had to remain unemployed, making everyday life a lot harder.
“I’m unemployed so trying to manage my everyday expenses like food, rent and medical bills has been challenging,” she said.
Kennedy has relied heavily on her mother, “her angel,” who moved indefinitely from New Jersey to help her with basic tasks like bathing, grocery shopping and taking Kennedy’s 17-year-old daughter to and from places.
Kennedy’s mother has not been the only one supporting the small family during these times.
“The community has been unbelievable,” she said. Several Santa Clarita Valley residents have already reached out to her offering donations and organizing fundraisers.
Among them are locals Fred Arnold and Marcy James, who have organized Wine on the Lake, an event at Arnold’s home in which all funds will go to help support Kennedy.
“When we hear someone’s in need, it’s one thing to be on social media and hit a ‘like’ button,” James said. “It’s another to do something. When you hear a cry for help, it’s our responsibility to do something.”
Arnold added that he wants to encourage the community, whether they know Kennedy or not, to attend and meet “like-minded people that want to give someone help and compassion during challenging times.”
Kennedy has also received donations from Survival of the Fittest, a Valencia gym, and Circle of Hope, a nonprofit organization providing assistance to those battling cancer.