(The image above is of and was created by my late friend Christine as were those at the bottom of the story…Please read on to learn more…Thank You)
It’s February and the homestretch of basketball season but…
I’m not going to the gym this weekend.
I’ll be going home to say goodbye and celebrate the life of a friend taken all too soon…once again by breast cancer.
No, she wasn’t a coach, player or anyone from the women’s basketball landscape where I spend my time. She was a friend I met with a camera in her hand at a hometown Athletic Hall of Fame banquet. I went on to join the Board of Directors of that Hall of Fame and on most trips back for meetings or events, she and I would find some time to focus our cameras on a little bit of Mother Nature’s artwork.
When we’re kids we would easily make and drop friends like we change our clothes. As adults we’re more accustomed to acquaintances cautiously coming and going in our lives while setting that friendship bar just a little bit higher than we did in our youth.
I’m humbled and proud that she saw fit to call me a friend and share some of her much, much too limited time with this long winded old coach and photographer. Christine (Vorsheck) Shewfelt was a daughter, a wife, a mother, an artist, a photographer…and a friend. While it may be stating the obvious, I’m going to miss her.
All this month we’ve again looked around arenas across the country and seen pink uniforms…pink shoes…pink coaching ensembles…along with some genuinely tacky ties and sport coats. Years ago (December 27, 2000) it was an honor to coach in the first “outdoor” game as part of Charli Turner Thorne’s staff at Arizona State when we took on Pat and her Lady Vol’s from Tennessee raising awareness and money for breast cancer in front of almost 17,000 fans. Now, every February schedules across the country highlight Play4Kay games honoring survivors and raising funds for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund. The fight and the challenge goes on year round, not just in February. The memory and legacy of Kay and so many others won’t let us forget that much too cruel battle often at times seems unending.
While that awareness and progress against breast and other cancers continues to grow, we’re reminded over and over of just how fragile life can be inside the arena and out. Syracuse standout Tiana Mangakahia was just cleared last week to return to practice eight months after her diagnosis of breast cancer. In November of 2015 a player from my time as an assistant coach at the University of Memphis (Then Memphis State) lost her battle with breast cancer after fending it off time and again over six years . Below is a link to an article I wrote at that time with some still very valid advice for coaches. I strongly encourage you to take a moment to look back and maybe, afterwards, reach out to a former player of your own.
https://bluestarmedia.org/losing-a-lady-tiger/
I also know several former players I coached over my years on the bench who have added the title of “breast cancer survivor” to their resume eclipsing anything that they may have ever achieved as an athlete. No doubt in 25 years there are surely others I’m not even aware of.
Cancer is malevolent and non-discriminating disease. Though battling cancer of a different type, my younger sister just endured her 10th round of chemotherapy Tuesday morning with a smile on her face despite knowing what brutal side effects were soon to follow. She faces two more rounds but has seen positive scan results thus far. I’d trade places with her in a moment if I could.
My friend Christine fought the good battle. She left no stone unturned. The example she left to her four kids and the love she shared with her husband Chris will ensure she’ll always be a part of their lives…and those of all who knew her. Her fine art prints were creative and inspirational. Those who know Photoshop know that kind of innovative photographic work is done in layers. Some of her pieces featured 20 or more to generate the look and feeling she was seeking to convey. It’s also how she saw the world…in layers.
Nothing was simply as it appeared. Christine always knew there was more to a landscape, a sunset, or an abandoned structure than just it’s surface appearance. And she most certainly recognized that people possessed much more depth than they were willing share on first impressions. Whether she was framing an image or a friend, she was going to capture those layers that made something…or someone…special.
Photography, by definition, is the capture of light. Breast cancer has again shaded some of the brightness in our world. As life goes on we’ll “photoshop” our hearts and memories focusing on the times we shared rather than dwelling on the futures we were robbed of. Whether it’s family or friends…players or coaches…cancer continues to take from us that one commodity we all foolishly believe is limitless…time.
I’d love to go shoot some photos with Christine one more time. She laughed till she cried once when I found my graceful backside splashing down into a creek of ice cold water. I’d gladly take another fall just to look up and see her standing there once more. My friends…call someone tonight. Hug the ones you love for no reason. Surprise someone with a unexpected visit or a gift. If you “care enough to send the very best”, drop a card in the mail. Hell, just leave a message or send a text that you know will make them smile just for an instant. Cancer is a thief…and it’s stealing much too many important moments from our lives.
(The images above are just a sample of the creative fine art of Christine Shewfelt)
