F**k cancer rings loud and true for this survivor: Meet Bonita Riley

Every week, I will be profiling an extraordinary human being who lives in our community. If you know someone who is doing something interesting with their life, I want to hear about it. Send me an email at [email protected].

It’s not a journey you should have to take alone.

Bonita Riley will tell you that. Cancer is scary. It’s consuming. It can often leave you feeling exhausted, helpless, hopeless and alone. But it doesn’t have to. With the right kind of support, there’s light at the end of the tunnel.

“Your journey is a lot better if you don’t have to struggle,” says the 52-year-old cancer survivor. “I had support behind me 100 per cent and that made my journey so much easier.”

The circumstances were “very dramatic.” She had discovered a lump in her right breast while doing a self-examination less than a month and a half before her 49^th birthday. With no family history of cancer, the diagnosis took Bonita completely by surprise. She was shocked and devastated. Immediately, she booked an appointment to see her family doctor and the worst was confirmed. Bonita was diagnosed with Stage 1 breast cancer.

“The two worst days of my life were being diagnosed and losing my hair,” recalls Bonita.

The inevitable was going to happen. Chemotherapy. There’s a list of common side effects, and losing your hair is one of them. Before she began one of 13 rounds of chemotherapy in Huntsville (one at Royal Victoria in Barrie), Bonita chopped and donated her beautiful locks. She always loved her hair, and at the time of her diagnosis it was waist-length. It had been her signature trait for most of her life. She had grown it for years and years and it was healthy and thick, untouched by the chemicals of hair dye.

I had 23 inches of hair donated to kids in the community who are battling cancer and have lost their hair. For me it was like paying it forward. I was happy to do it.

Her shorter do took some time to get used to. But now she wouldn’t have it any other way. Her pixie cut is reflective of her new, cancer-free self.

When you’re going through something as devastating as cancer, you need to know that you’re not alone. She was nineteen years employed at Panolam and her boss and the rest of the team she worked with stood behind her every step of the way. And that made her dealing with cancer a whole lot easier. Bonita knows this isn’t the case for everyone. So many people struggle on their journey, she says, and she’s seen cancer patients who couldn’t afford the costs associated with treatment: parking fees at the hospital if you’re doing radiation, travel expenses like gas and food if you’re seeking treatment out of town.

You already have the one worry of having cancer but I can tell you your medical journey is a lot better if you don’t have to struggle. The biggest thing for me was the support I had. I had one of my closest girlfriends call me and tell me I was going to be okay. I think it’s so important to hear other people say you’re going to be okay.

And sometimes it’s necessary to swallow your pride and ask those who are close to you for help. And as hard as it may be, to smile through the bad days and maintain a positive outlook on the situation. Bonita says you have to do your best and keep your chin up.

On November 9, 2013, she received the best birthday present ever: surgery to remove the cancerous lump. She looked at is as a gift of a lifetime. A birthday she could have again, but knowing how vicious cancer can be and that every single day that passed with the cancer growing inside her weighing on her mind, made the decision easy.

“I didn’t care that it was my birthday,” says Bonita, adding that Dr. Kirkpatrick, one of Huntsville Hospital’s main surgeons, performed the successful surgery and she awoke to ‘Happy Birthday’ written on her feet. “It was the best birthday present knowing I was cancer free by the end of it. And you know what? I had the best 50^th birthday at bowling alley. It was the best party ever. I want a 50^th birthday like that every year.”

The staff in the chemo unit at Huntsville District Memorial Hospital along with a handful of amazing – not to mention cheerful – volunteers made the time Bonita spent receiving her chemo treatments a positive experience for her. She can’t say enough good things about the doctors who looked after her, including Dr. Kirkpatrick.

The toy hippo Bonita holds is near and dear to her heart. It’s given to cancer patients to help them smile through their battle with the disease.

Shedding some light on a hardship gone by is the fact that Bonita has discovered a new hobby: candle-making. She always loved candles and this is a new pastime she’s picked up since her battle with cancer. In her spare time she makes the fragrant, beautiful, all-natural soy candles. She won’t divulge what her secret is to making them but a lot of love goes into one. Sometimes she gives them away as gifts, other times she hosts parties and sells them. And the one thing Bonita will continue to do for the rest of her days is offer an ear to anybody going through a journey with cancer like she did.

Bonita in her kitchen where her all-natural candles are made.

It is Bonita’s hope that by sharing her remarkable story of healing that she raises awareness on the importance of self-examination for women. Mammograms aren’t mandatory until women are 50 years old, but cancer doesn’t care about your age. She was 48 when she was diagnosed. And without her taking the initiative to do it, who knows what her fate may have been. She’s been cancer-free and loving life for three years.

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