Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
LOGAN -- Friday morning in Logan was the start of the Wasatch Back, which is part of the Ragnar Relay series. It's an event that features teams of 12 runners each, who cover a course of 188 miles.
Many participants will run the difficult course in memory of a loved one. Becky Flinders, of Lehi, plans to run in memory of her mother.
The 28-year-old loves to talking about her mother, Jill Ehorn-Foy, who she says loved playing the piano and riding roller coasters.
"She was so service-oriented," Flinders says. "Everyone came first in her life. It was never about herself."
These days, Flinders is trying to pay her mother back. The woman who loved water slides and butterflies was diagnosed with cancer in April 2009.
"They had to do several tests to see where it started," Flinders recalls. "By the time they actually found it, it had spread to so many places the origin was harder to find. The mass in her lung was about 4 or 5 inches, so they figured that was definitely the origin."
Ehorn-Foy made the decision to fight hard.
"Even though the doctor said ‘this is not curable,' she says, ‘I'm going to be the first that's curable on this'" Flinders said.
The woman who loved dance recitals and talent shows went through radiation and chemotherapy.
"She developed a blood condition called DIC, so her blood would not clot. She would bleed constantly through her mouth. So, even through all of that, she kept a positive attitude," Flinders says.
The first-grade teacher at Coral Canyon Elementary school in Hurricane lost her battle with cancer just a couple of months ago. She passed away on Easter morning at age 58, nearly six years after Flinders' father died from a brain aneurysm.
"Life's unfair; and throughout all the tough times you just have to come out thinking ‘I still have so much. I'm not going to give up on life right now,' but even though it's hard," Flinders says.
So, she and 11 teammates will run hard in this weekend's Ragnar Wasatch Back Relay. Two of her teammates also lost a parent to cancer.
The race, which began in Logan Friday, ends in Park City. Each person runs three stages of the 188-mile event.
Flinders' team, which is running to raise money for the American Cancer Society, hopes to finish Saturday at noon.
"[I'll] just gut through it just like I know my mom would have. You know, never give up," Flinders says. "I know she's proud, very proud."
E-mail: kaiken@ksl.com
