Kids Cancer Care 2015/2016 Annual Report

“Jason was at the back of the boat and I was at the front, so I would sign the coach’s instructions to him. As the lead stroke, I was in charge of setting the pace. Imagine that, a deaf person in charge of keeping the rhythm for the team. But I could do it because I could feel the vibration of the drum.” ~ Robin Buck

Physically fit and active, Jason and Robin Buck easily took to their crew positions on Kids Cancer Care’s Parent Team for the 2015 Dragon Boat Races. Jason is powerful and strong, so his spot at the back was perfect. As an experienced paddler, Robin was a natural for lead stroke.

Being 100 per cent deaf didn’t pose a single issue for either Jason or Robin—or for the rest of the crew.

Rumors have it that the Kids Cancer Care Parent Team would have won gold instead of silver in the 2015 race, if Jason hadn’t been called away on race day to be with their son Kellan because their babysitter cancelled.

“One of our friends on the team still bugs Jason every time he sees him,” says Robin. “He says, ‘We would have won if you hadn’t left us.’”

It’s all in jest and a testament to the bonds parents make, while training and competing together in the Dragon Boat Races each year through Kids Cancer Care’s Parent Program.

There was a time, however; when being deaf presented a titanic obstacle for Jason and Robin—when their four-year-old son Kellan was diagnosed with leukemia.

“I was holding Kellan in my arms,” says Robin the night they received Kellan’s diagnosis. “He was crying and I couldn’t hear ANYTHING, but the doctor’s lips were moving. Then I saw my mom fall into the chair. That’s an image I’ll never forget. I said, ‘Will someone please hold Kellan, so I can figure out what’s going on here?’”

Jason took Kellan from Robin’s arms and the doctor turned to her and said, “Kellan has leukemia. We need to get him to the children’s hospital now!”

After a few days at the Alberta Children’s Hospital and starting chemotherapy, Kellan took a turn for the worse. He was diagnosed with pneumonia and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) and placed in intensive care.

“Because we were in ICU, everyone was wearing masks,” says Robin. “Eighty per cent of my hearing is through lip reading, so I couldn’t understand a thing. It was awful.”

To help, their eldest daughter Jazmine would come in to Calgary from Canmore to meet with the doctors and take notes. Afterwards, she would return to Canmore, transcribe the notes and email them to her parents.

“We never really knew what was going on until two days later. It was terrifying.”

If Mom and Dad were terrified, little Kellan was horrified. But true to his name—Mighty Warrior in Gaelic—Kellan fought the disease at every stage

“He’s a stubborn little guy,” an ICU doctor said to his parents. “But you know what? That’s what will pull him through all of this.”

Kellan is now in his third year of treatment. He’s swimming again, golfing and playing baseball. He’s also less anxious and starting to be more independent. He’s in grade one with excellent marks and, although he still suffers from separation anxiety and is still mistrustful of adult strangers, Kellan has a close circle of friends—mostly little girls—who look out for him.

“When Kellan was in isolation at home, his best friend used to come over and stand outside on the porch with a window between them just to be with him,” says Robin.

The isolation was also tough on Mom and Dad: “It was a hard lesson to learn,” says Robin, “People you thought would be right beside you in this tragedy were absent and people you barely know were the ones picking us up.”

Fortunately, the Bucks discovered Kids Cancer Care early in Kellan’s cancer journey: “Kids Cancer Care has given us another family, one who understands what we are going through, a support system for when we are tired. And it gives us a chance to give back too,” says Robin. “It’s like living on an island with no boat; Kids Cancer Care gave us the ferry-ride back in.”

“The best thing for Kellan is getting away from the hospital and the house,” says Jason. “He loves the bunk beds at Camp Kindle and the freedom to run around the grounds. He’s a nature kid, so he loves the pond and the fields. He’s happy there.”

Thank you for making our year-round outreach programs possible for parents and kids. In 2015, you helped give 2,592 participants a chance to get out and get active in a community of families that understands and cares.