One woman in Baltimore County found her purpose in life after surviving a life-threatening battle with melanoma.
Kelly O'Donnell Ware has spent the last fifteen years since then helping others through their cancer treatment.
In the early 90s, Kelly O'Donnell Ware was diagnosed with skin cancer. She got treatment for it and continued to live a normal life until 18 years later, when she found a tumor in her groin; the skin cancer was actually melanoma.
"It became a serious, uh, disease, and it was considered late stage of diagnosis, so it's extremely scary learning that."
She started treatment again, but this time the doctors recommended a clinical trial since there weren't many treatment options in 2008 for melanoma.
"It's one of the hardest types of cancer to battle."
During the trials, things got worse, and she ended up with another tumor despite doctors surgically removing the first one.
She says going through treatment was the hardest thing she has ever done.
"Basically I feel like they were buying me time, and that's hard to say. I literally had a goal to watch my daughter get her driver's license when she was 16, and she's thriving in New York, and I have two grandchildren from her, so that's just is amazing."
And as we approach melanoma awareness month in May and the warmer months of the year, she says she wants people to know the dangers of melanoma and pay attention to any changes in their skin.
"Have it looked at. It's worth it. It's peace of mind when they say, Oh, it's nothing to be concerned about. But if it is, early detection is key. That is the key to not having it go as deep and as seriously as mine did."
Ware says going through her own treatment is what led to her creating Kelly's Dream.
"So what started as something to leave a legacy turned into a nonprofit within several years from then, and it's my proudest moment. It really is."
The non-profit is dedicated to financially helping cancer patients going through treatment.
"Are you able to put food on your table? Um, is your electricity on? Do you have transportation to get to and from treatment? Do you have your phone so the doctors, nurses, and family can check in on you? And these are important things that sometimes they get forgotten."
Since Kelly's Dream is a non-profit, Ware relies on volunteers, donations, and fundraisers to help.
"Kelly's Dream is hosting its fourth annual music fest in June at the Eastern Yacht Club in Essex; Ware says it's their largest fundraiser of the year to help Kelly's Dream continue to support cancer patients."
