Mrs.
Marlene Vanderbur has been the warm smile that has greeted the children every morning at the Willows Child Learning Center since Jan. 17, 1977, the day the school first opened.
She remembers the names of every child and their siblings. She likes to refer to herself as the "Director of First Impressions" rather than school secretary, and if you've ever been to the Willows, you understand why.
Last year she had a large tumor removed from her hip and after radiation was deemed cancer free.
In June of this year, she started feeling a bit under the weather. She developed a cough that quickly turned into something more. After visiting the doctor, she was told she had a baseball sized mass on her lung. It was lung cancer. Devastating news, especially to someone who has never smoked. The doctors quickly took her into surgery to remove the mass and ended up removing her entire lung. She is now undergoing chemotherapy to prevent any further spread of the disease.
This battle has left her unable to work, and she recently moved to North Dakota to live with her mother and sister. They are providing the care she needs to battle this disease. She is so well thought of by the parents and children who attend The Willows that a bake sale set up in front of the school by the mother of a former student raised over $2000 to help her with her medical costs.
The outpouring of support was beyond expectations.
If you would like to help Mrs. Vanderbur in her battle with cancer, donations can be made at any Wells Fargo bank to the Marlene Vanderbur Donation Fund.