GREENRIVER—The Sweetwater County School District No. 2 Transportation Department is raising funds for co-worker, Tiffany Herren, who was diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year.

Benefit Dinner and Silent Auction

The transportation department will be presenting a benefit dinner and silent auction on Saturday, November 18 to raise funds to help pay for Herren’s expenses. The dinner will be at the Fraternal Order of Eagles in Green River, in which they will serve spaghetti and auction off some great items donated by businesses in the community.

“We had three co-workers make a beautiful blanket and another co-worker who went to Murdoch’s and got a fire pit donated for her cause,” Burraston said.

The dinner will be at 6 pm. The plates will be $10 for adults and $5 for kids.

Donations

To help and support Herren further, the transportation department is accepting donations from anyone in the community who may want to donate for the cause.

“I am getting together raffle items again for another raffle and I am going to try and make it more public so that everybody can come and help, and if they want they could donate money down at the bus barn for her cause,” Burraston said.

Anyone who wants to donate items for the auction, money, or purchase raffle tickets can do so at the bus barn in Green River. All proceeds will go toward Herren’s expenses.

The Diagnosis

On May 24, Herren found a lump that was diagnosed as Invasive Ductal Carcinoma. Due to its large size, surgery was not an option until Herren went through 16 rounds of Chemotherapy. Herren just had her last chemo treatment on Friday, October 20.

Treatment Plan

The initial plan for surgery was a lumpectomy, in which only a portion of the breast is removed, whereas the full breast is removed in a mastectomy.

However, MRI results showed that the cancer has not shrunk like the doctors had hoped it would.

“It actually has flattened but is still over an inch and a half long and still barely attached to my chest wall,” Herren said. “We will still be doing surgery, although, they were hoping just the lumpectomy with radiation in the beginning. Now I have to decide between a double mastectomy or a very difficult lumpectomy.”

Herren’s Options

The lumpectomy will have to be done twice to ensure the cancer is completely removed and will require reconstruction. Then she will have to do a mandatory five to six weeks of radiation therapy. Then, once Herren is cleared of the cancer, she will undergo the reconstruction surgery.

With the mastectomy, she will have two surgeries, one being the mastectomy, and the other being reconstruction, and she may possibly have to do radiation therapy.

She will meet with radiology, the plastic surgeon, and general surgeon on October 31 and November 1, and she hopes she will come away with a surgery date.

Donations from Co-Workers

“Our work has started a donation and raffles for her to help with her travel expenses, food, hotel stay, etcetera,” Herren’s co-worker Bridget Burraston said.

The transportation department’s goal was to reach $1,000 amongst themselves for Herren, and if they reached the goal the transportation bosses Oscar Barton, Scott Robb, and Daryl Wadsworth said they would dye their hair pink to support breast cancer awareness, and to show their love and support for Herren.

“Well needless to say, I counted up the money and I presented her a check of $1,299.52! We went over our goal,” Burraston said. “So our coworkers said they would do it and we had a few more who actually joined in, which shows that we have a lot of spirit and we are rooting for our co-worker.”

Unexpected Support

“I am completely blown away from the amount of support and all the hard-work from my co-workers. I didn’t expect any of them to put in the amount of personal time they have just to help me and my family,” Herren said.

Herren is a wife and a mother of two, but she does not have much extended family. A lot of the family she does have do not have much of a presence in her life. Therefore, her co-workers have given her the support she doesn’t have from relatives.

“When I first found out, those that I thought would for sure be there to support me kind of disappeared and others like my coworkers amazed me with how much they have supported me,” Herren said. “It truly makes me feel blessed and gives me strength and courage to know that there are people that truly care and they don’t have to be blood family, or people you hang out with daily.”

Support is a Source for Strength

The transportation department’s support goes beyond financial. Their support has shown Herren that she is loved and cared for, and that has given her strength to carry with her throughout her battle.

“She is a strong woman with a very strong will to live,” Burraston said.

“It is kind of empowering to know the support I have from my coworkers and reminds me that no matter what happens to me in my life, there are always true people who care,” Herren said. “Also, my boss Oscar Barton is a pretty awesome guy to do the things he has, and how understanding he has been since the very first day I found out about my cancer.”

Staying Positive

Herren has stayed positive throughout her battle. She wants others to know that positivity is extremely important when going through a battle with cancer.

“Cancer sucks, but the lessons I have learned within myself about other people and about life just in general are amazing,” Herren said. “It has taught me things and has opened my eyes in a different light. I know it must sound weird, but it’s true.”

“For anyone going through cancer, stay positive, keep going,” Herren said. “Those who know someone who has cancer, be supportive, reach out to them, because even if they say they’re ok and don’t need it, trust me, they do. It will make their day to know all who truly care.”

How to Help

Donations: Take donations to the bus barn, 320 Monroe Ave., in Green River

Benefit dinner and silent auction: Saturday, November 18, at the Fraternal Order of Eagles, 88 N. 2nd St., in Green River, at 6 pm

Raffle: Purchase raffle tickets at bus barn