Jane Marie's Story

Jane was born in Manhattan to her very young parents, Gerd and John. She was raised on Staten Island with younger siblings, Suzanne, Linda and Roger. She excelled in school and received a full scholarship to Cornell University where she met the love of her life, Bill. They married in 1955 and moved from Staten Island to Youngstown, then Cleveland Hts. and finally Park Forest, Illinois. They raised their 3 children, Devi, Bob Sr. and Wil together. She was an exceptional cook and seamstress, sewing most of her and Devi’s clothes. She was manager of Park Forest Marshall Fields shoe dept., Matteson Carson Pirie Scott shoe dept. and then went into real estate. She became a broker and served on the South Suburban Board of Realtors and became Vice President/General Manager of Century 21 Dabbs. She had 3 beloved grandchildren, Bob Jr., Rachel Jane and Kristen.

In January 2002, just 2 months after turning 65, Jane was diagnosed with MDS and told she had about 6 months to live. Her answer to her doctor was, “Don’t tell me when I’m going to die. I’ll let you know when I’m ready.” She was referred to University of Chicago Hospital, meanwhile researching everything she could find about MDS. She signed on to try every available clinical trial while pushing the hospital, her insurance and Medicare to allow her to have a stem cell transplant. She asked family members to be tested, so she would be ready if she was approved. She was and had her transplant in July of 2002 with stem cells from her youngest sister, Linda that were an identical match – almost unheard of! She went back to work in August 2002. In September 2002 she was cleared to go back to work and her doctor wasn’t surprised that she had already done that. She was told she was in remission during the fall of 2002 and her hospital trips became easier and less often. Shortly after being recognized at the hospital as an MDS survivor, she came out of remission, diagnosed with AML in May 2007. She knew going in that their ages was going to negatively impact the longevity of the transplant and that this was a very real possibility. She signed up for any available clinical trial again but ran out of options in June 2008 and passed away peacefully on July 16, 2008 surrounded by her family. Her body was then donated in hopes they could learn more about her disease.

I could not have gone through all my mom did. Transfusions, infusions, chemo, bone marrow aspirations, plus all the physical discomfort. I was amazed by how many people came up to me at her memorial and told stories of how she had helped them, even while she was so sick! She never once complained and always said she was “doing good” when anyone asked. She is truly my hero! Her ultimate goal was to be a help in finding a cure for those who came after her.