Kimberly

Kim was diagnosed with AML Leukemia on July 22, 2009, just after she finished high school. She'd been feeling well, just showing a few bruises when she went to Primary Childrens Medical Center for a heart surgery to fix a relatively minor condition she's had since she was born. A blood test before the surgery showed that her blood had been completely taken over by the cancer. They admitted her that day and began treatment right away. She went through five long rounds of chemotherapy, doing relatively well, with the exception of one infection that led to a very scary stay in the Pediatric ICU. She spent almost all of that time in the hospital, with just a few breaks to go home. By the end of March 2010 she was allowed to go home for good- officially in remission! She was so excited to finally go to USU Fall semester, and got strait A's in all of her classes! Psychology, Humanities, Family Finance and ANATOMY. Not a week after finals, at a regular check up at PCMC, her blood tests showed that her cancer was back. And thus began round two- Kim's goal was to make it to a bone marrow transplant. We had found a donor, so all that was left was to get her in remission once more. After three rounds of chemotherapy, her body was no longer strong enough to keep fighting, no matter that her spirit was. She will always be with us. 7:48 pm, March 31, 2011

Wednesday, April 13, 2011


Beautiful Wood Plaque given to Our Family by Our Friend Ben Rogers on April 10th, 2011.
Dear, Loved Friends-

I am not quite ready to express myself to you. But I will. This blog will be here for as long as I am allowed to keep it, and I hope to, from time to time, continue to add a thoughts and experiences about Kim. For now, I have a message from my dad that he would like to share.

I can never thank you enough, for all you have done. And be warned- I plan to ask you for more. But not today.

Always, Love, Emily


From David:

As I was talking to Ben Rogers this Sunday afternoon in our home, a correlation between Kim’s suffering and early Mormon Pioneers come to mind.

It seems cruel that people have to go through pain and suffering, especially people who are doing everything the best they can; they don’t seem to deserve such a hard life. But as is taught by our prophets, our trials in life are a process we mortals go through to become more compassionate, learn patience, and become more perfected -even more like Christ.

As the Mormon Pioneers had to suffer physical pain, endurance and even death in many cases, they didn’t complain. Modern day people who learn of the Pioneer history often complain against God, wondering why He would let such a cruel thing happen to His chosen people. But you don’t see journal entries of these people complaining of their experience; it was a blessing to them. They were given spiritual blessings and strengths we don’t understand. These harsh experiences helped sanctify these people so they were worthy of God’s greatest blessings in heaven.

The Lord told the Prophet Joseph Smith in the Liberty jail that his trials, if endured well, would exalt him on high. These pioneer experiences are recorded in history for others to benefit from. The ground that these people lost their lives on, such as Martin’s Cove, for example, is hallowed ground. Modern-day treks bring these stories and experiences to life for many youth groups for whom the spirit is felt and conversions to the gospel are made.

So it is with Kim. She suffered in her battle with AML leukemia, months of hospital stays, 8 rounds of chemo therapy -each one bringing on life threatening side effects and untold pain. She bore these “well” as the Lord told the Prophet Joseph to do. Kim’s undaunted spirit, courage and positive attitude won her the love and respect of all who knew her and cared for her. Her circle of friends and admirers exploded to include many more people than she would ever imagine. These events were recorded by her sister Emily and made public to the world through the modern day miracle of the blog. As her father, I’m totally amazed at the volume of people who expressed their admiration of Kim and her great example of positive attitude and adherence to the Savior’s Gospel.

So, just as the Pioneers were perfected in the “refiner’s fire” with their trials, Kim was as well, with her trials. Kim illuminated to her best when she was under adversity, both in earlier life experiences, such as her training for track, or in her battle with cancer. She was particularly amazing in the later. She was truly magnificent. This experience, I’m certain has refined her spirit to the point that she had learned all she needed to graduate to the next level in the plan of salvation. She now has another calling and I’m sure is running at her best to do it with perfection. Her trials and example has made and will continue to make me a better person.

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Memorial Fund

We have created a memorial fund for Kimberly at the USU Community Credit Union. I know many of you have been asking about this, so we finally have it taken care of. You can call or visit any branch, and ask for the Kimberly Nelson Donation Fund, and they will be able to help you.

As a side note, we are still planning to represent Kim at the Relay for Life event on April 15th.

Accommodations

For those of you who are coming from out of town for the funeral, a dear friend of ours and Kim's, Mary Goodlad, has arranged for discounted rates at the hotel she works at.
Comfort in is located at 25 West 400 North in Logan, and if you call her to make your reservation, the cost is only $35 for one night. Her phone number is 435-752-3261.
Thank you, Mary.