Retired Benton teacher’s fight a testament to resilience
Patsy James, a retired teacher who spent 24 years teaching in the Benton School District at Ringgold Elementary, is a breast cancer survivor and her story is a testament to resilience, hope, and faith.
One September morning in 1993, Patsy woke up with a sharp pain in her chest, it was an unexpected moment call she couldn’t ignore.
The following day at school, Patsy confided in a friend and fellow teacher, Patsy Sample, who had battled breast cancer herself. Sample empathized with Patsy and offered to cover her recess shift, while Patsy went to the doctor to get checked.
The first doctor performed an ultrasound and suggested everything was fine. After the ultrasound, she pointed out to the doctor where the pain was coming from and they found a small spot that was possibly cancerous.
Patsy then told her co-worker Sample the results, who suggested Patsy contact her obstetrician. The obstetrician then sent Patsy immediately to a surgeon.
By the Thursday of that week, she was checked and the pathologist returned to tell her she had breast cancer. She faced a mastectomy just one week later.
“I had a great support system with my family,” said Patsy.
After the mastectomy,
Patsy began chemotherapy and was originally scheduled for radiation therapy, which terrified her.
“Before that first time, I got on my knees on the bathroom floor and prayed and prayed,” said James.
While in the bathroom, Patsy’s husband, Jerry, told her it was time to see the doctors and they were waiting on her.
Patsy, Jerry, and
Patsy’s mom and dad were all there when four doctors they told them, “Mrs. James, we don’t know what it is, but we don’t need radiation.”
Patsy, however, knew exactly what happened.
“I knew exactly what it was, an answered prayer,” she said.
Patty was cancer-free and had worked throughout her entire treatment, she missed some days, but Patsy credits her students
as one of the things that kept her going along with her family.
“The students and the faculty at Ringgold Elementary are the best, they always stepped up,” added Patsy.
“In your mind, as you go through this you think, I’m 39 years old, why me? I had my daughter, Jana, she was in the ninth grade and it was really hard for Jana and Jerry,” said Patsy.
Roughly five years later, Patsy went with her mother for a check-up at the doctor’s office. The doctor did a scan and found potentially dangerous satellites all in Patsy’s other breast. The doctor told her she had about a year to get the other breast off.
Gary Talbert was Patsy’s reconstruction doctor and she asked him to take a look he sent her to another doctor who called Patsy back to inform her that waiting a year wasn’t an option, she needed to have the surgery as soon as possible.
“That’s what we did. The adjust to the change in your body is hard but you get used to that,” said Patsy.
For Patsy, among the toughest challenges wasn’t just what she was experiencing physically but mentally as well.
She shared a story of a lady in town, whose name she unfortunately couldn’t remember. She didn’t know the woman very well, but Patsy received a call out of the blue asking to talk and agreed to meet.
“I was able to ask her questions you can’t ask your husband or your parents,” said Patsy.
Patsy had taught her daughter in the past so that was how this person knew of Patsy’s struggles.
“She told me ‘someday there will be a day that you don’t get up and every day and think about cancer.”
That’s part of the reason for a while, Patsy didn’t like October,
Breast Cancer Awareness month.
“But then I thought, that’s not fair to the men and women who are fighting cancer,” she said.
Patsy said thinking of the people going through struggles similar to hers right now and her students and those are the reasons she decided to share her story.
Patsy is happy now, living with her husband Jerry. Patsy’s daughter
Jana and son-in-law Wes, live right next door. Patsy has two grandchildren, Jared and Drake, Jared is a senior at Arkansas State and Drake is a sophomore at Harmony Grove. Jana teaches at Harmony Grove, following in her mother’s footsteps as an educator.
Patsy shared words for those currently battling cancer.
“The only other thing I’d say is pray, maintain your faith. I can remember so many times in life where no I look back and can see that god had control of every bit of my life,” said Patsy. “I have been so blessed.”