ABOUT US

Our Story

Libby was a daughter, sister, wife, friend to many and a talented elementary school teacher. She stuffed so many incredible life experiences into her 35 years here on earth which include living abroad in Germany for close to two years, building a two-story beach house from the ground up with her twin sister and construction-savvy father, playing collegiate basketball and being honored with an excellence in teaching nomination. She was gifted in many ways and had a wildly creative and brilliant mind. 

On November 28th of 2017, Libby experienced an unrelenting headache and subsequently suffered a grand mal seizure later that day in her classroom. She was transported to the hospital and underwent a CT scan. The scan revealed a golf ball size tumor in her left temporal lobe, dangerously close to the eloquent cortex of the brain which is responsible for many sensory functions including speech and language processing. She was diagnosed with an astrocytoma, grade II. 

Due to the dangerous location of the tumor, it was determined by the medical professionals here in Oregon that Libby would be best served by a neurosurgeon located in the Bay Area in California. To avoid permanent neurologic deficits and preserve brain function in and near the eloquent area, intraoperative electrical stimulation mapping (IESM) was necessary and was performed by the surgeon in California. 

Over the next 2 years, Libby underwent various treatments and therapies to try and slow the disease progression. In April of 2020, she underwent a second brain surgery to biopsy some concerning growth that was presenting on the MRI’s. It was then we received the crushing news that Libby’s tumor had developed into a glioblastoma, the most deadly and aggressive form of brain cancer. Libby fought bravely and valliently throughout and ultimately succumbed to this relentless disease on October 18th, 2020. 

It is with her life, personality and bravery at the forefront of our minds that we started this foundation. Libby found it devastating that other people diagnosed with malignant brain cancer didn’t have the ability to access cutting edge clinical trials because they lack the financial resources necessary to travel to the large brain tumor centers here in the United States. If even in some small way, we can ease the financial burdens and pressures of those walking this journey so that they can better focus on their treatment, then it will all be worth it.