Giving, determined and loving school

Jen Hodshon, entering her senior year at the University of South Carolina, is one of hundreds of people who’ve gone to www.cancer.org/lifelist to make an American Cancer Society life list. Like the others, Jen wants to help finish the fight against cancer so everyone has time to achieve their dreams.

Life list photo: Jen receiving University of South Carolina Woman of the Year finalist award.

Some intriguing accomplishments and goals! Let’s have Jen break down her life list.

√ Started my own nonprofit at age 9

When I was 9 and my brother was 5, we started a nonprofit called Bookmark My Words. I’d had a pet peeve about folded pages in books, so we created bookmarks, colored them, sold them for $1 each and donated the money to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Classmates and neighbors got involved. When I entered 8^th grade and our family moved from New Jersey to Cary, N.C., we started giving the money to UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center in Chapel Hill. Over the years, we raised $50,000 with our bookmarks and community events we created like “Caroling for a Cause.” My brother, now a junior in high school, is still involved. I’ve been focusing my service on American Cancer Society Relay For Life fundraising walks.

√ Was my high school mascot

The city built us a new school my junior year, and we were now the Catamounts. A catamount is kind of a “mountain panther,” and they’re uncommon outside of North Carolina. I was the Catamount for our school junior and senior year. I wore a very furry – and very hot! – costume to all the football games. I didn’t have any special talents. I just danced and ran around and took pictures with little kids. It was fun- and very hot!

√ Fell in love with my university

I just can’t say enough good things about my university. It seems like the only institution left that sees you as a person versus a number. They find out what your goals are and make sure you get there. I’m very involved: I’m a tour guide, I help teach “University 101,” I run social media for faculty and staff and take care of the University VP’s blog. I love everything about USC, and the fact that the football team is playing well doesn’t hurt.

√ Directed Relay For Life for the University of SC

As I said, I’ve been raising money to fight cancer since age 9, but I never knew anyone who had cancer. Cancer was our cause mainly because mother said any money I made from my business had to go to someone who really needed it. We picked cancer out of the blue.

Jen Hodshon directed her university’s Relay For Life event, which she said raised $173,000.

But then on my 20^th birthday, I got a call that changed everything. My grandfather, who used to take us crabbing on Hilton Head, had been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer and given 3 weeks to live. A few days later, I was asked to direct our university’s Relay For Life event. I’d been involved freshman and sophomore years but was honestly looking to try something new. The news about my grandfather, however, hit me hard. I finally understood firsthand why it’s so important, and so meaningful, to be involved. I said, “Of course I’ll do it.”

We raised $173,000 this year, up $75,000 from last year, and increased participation to 2,800 people. Our Relay was the biggest non-football event we’ve had on campus.

□ End cancer forever

Although it’s exciting how much progress we’ve made over the past century, it’s sad we don’t have a cure yet. It’s one of those things we really need to focus on nationally and globally. If we can come together to figure out cancer, we’ll be able to solve a lot of other problems in this world.

□ Graduate a Gamecock

One more year!

□ Make an impact on the world

I’m majoring in elementary education. My long-term goal is to help make big changes to the public education system. We can’t be afraid of innovation in teaching and learning. I want to start by teaching in a high-risk area and earn my master’s and doctorate in education administration and policy. Poverty, whether urban or rural, correlates with low test scores, which eventually translate into more poverty, high crime rates and a vicious cycle that we desperately need to break. I think we can do it. That’s my passion.

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Be like Jen and make your life list now: www.cancer.org/lifelist. It’s easy and fun!

It’s Stephanie Bolton, a survivor and graphic designer from Woodstock, Ga., who shares the details of how she got to this point:

In October 2010, I was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) in my left breast. It was completely unexpected and was my first mammogram (2 years late). I never thought I would get breast cancer, so much so that I didn’t even go for my mamo at 40 like recommended.

In October 2010, I was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC) in my left breast. It was completely unexpected and was my first mammogram (2 years late). I never thought I would get breast cancer, so much so that I didn’t even go for my mamo at 40 like recommended.

One day, when I was coming home from one of my many doctor appointments, I was sitting at a red light and realized I hadn’t done any of the things in life that I “wanted to do someday.” We spend so much of our life saying, “ ‘One day’ I’m going to do this or that,” and we never stop to think that “one day” may never come. I decided at that point that once treatment was completed and I was able, I was going to start checking off my “one day” list.

About a year after my last chemo, I was at a party with one of my good friends, Gavin Karstensen, who I’ve known since we were teens involved in a local theatre group, Cobb Children’s Theatre, and I told him he had to take me hang gliding. I had seen on Facebook where he had gone. He told me about a friend who had connections at Skydive Georgia, and we all made plans to go. She thought I should start with the scarier sport first, and I was glad to since skydiving had always been a bucket list item for me anyway.

It took 3 tries before we actually got to go. The first time was cancelled due to weather; the second was cancelled due to plane issues. So by the third time I was very excited. I did it and it was awesome. It was a very freeing and thrilling experience. Between surviving cancer and skydiving, I really feel like I can do anything.

So now, no more waiting for “one day.” Now I’m making actually plans to check off the items on my list.

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