If loving others and valuing people were super-powers, Trish Gassaway would be super-hero number one. This two-time cancer survivor has learned that life is way too short to waste it!
Interview
MG: If you haven’t lived in Louisiana your entire life, what led you to move here?
TRISH: My husband is from Louisiana and he was looking for a new career change and was offered one at Fraenkel Company so we moved here in May of 1996.
MG: What is your favorite part about living here?
TRISH: The experiences and opportunities that myself and family has had along with the southern hospitality and food!!
MG: What is an event in your life that significantly changed the course of it?
TRISH: The death of my dear friend Nancy and a few years later my dad.
MG: What negative impacts did that event have for you, even if only temporary?
TRISH: The numb feeling I had while I was holding their hands as they took their last breath. The world just stopped I had to tell myself to breath; I didn’t know what to do next. Even though these were some of the toughest times of my life if given the choice I would do it again. Being able to say I love you one last time makes the hurt just a little easier.
MG: What good came out of that event for you? How did it improve your life?
TRISH: I learned that you don’t wait till tomorrow because tomorrow may never come for some. Nancy was infectious, her smile, her laugh and her drive. My Dad his you can do anything attitude and the life of family gatherings. I think God puts you where you need to be. Being with Nancy and that day made me stronger, it helped me take that path once again when my Dad died and later fighting cancer myself.
MG: How do you feel you have overcome that event?
TRISH: I don’t think I have overcome these events, they live with me every day, as each phase of my life progresses, I stop and think of them both. They were both great presences in my life and there is so much I haven’t been able to share with them, but the experiences with them made me stronger. I believe I needed to go through these experiences to be strong enough to face my own challenges but I know they are watching over me.
MG: What advice would you give to someone who is going through something similar?
TRISH: Take time and be present in your life and the lives of those you love. No one will be here forever so make the time that you do have worth remembering.
MG: When was a time that you stuck up for yourself and how did that enhance your life?
TRISH: For the first time in my life, I quit a job. It was a toxic situation that didn’t appear would get any better so for my own self-worth I made the choice that it was time to move on. I am now in a better place with wonderful co-workers.
MG: What quality about yourself are you most grateful for?
TRISH: Generosity
MG: What about yourself are you most proud?
TRISH: Staying positive in the face of adversity
MG: What do you consider to be your life motto?
TRISH: Start each day with a smile, put one foot in front of the other and keep going no matter what life throws at you. Remember it’s only a moment in time it this too shall pass.
MG: Who inspires, or has inspired, you in your life?
TRISH: My dad, he had a you-can-do-anything-you-put-your-mind-to attitude. My dad had arthritis in his spine causing an arch in his back and minimal movement in his neck, but despite these things he never stopped even through his most painful days. It wasn’t until I was about 10 that I found out my dad couldn’t read. This amazed me, how could someone who couldn’t read do all the things that my dad did? It was determination and the not quit attitude.
MG: Here can be the hardest one for many, tell us about yourself. Anything additional you want to share? It can be anything from your favorite recipe to the worst time of your life. Anything more you want to share with us.
TRISH: I am 51 years old; I have been married to my husband Mike for 25 years together for 30 years. We have 2 children a daughter Amanda and son Johnathan, and a I am a grandmother to 3 Chloe, Alistair and Oliver.
I am my mom’s caregiver; she has been living with my husband and I for the past 8 years. My mom has dementia and many other health problems. Even though this is the toughest thing I have ever done in my life I feel all my prior experiences have made me strong enough to handle it.
I am a SURVIVOR!!! I have fought and beat breast cancer twice! My family is my driving force. They have always been by my side to encourage and pick me up when I was down. My rock was my daughter Amanda, the love, dedication and devotion she has shown me during my fights has been beyond anything I could have imagined.
As seen in Modern Grace Magazine
Full Interview
MG: Where were you born and raised?
TRISH: I was born in Everett, Washington and raised in Clearwater, Florida
MG: If not Louisiana, what led to you move here? When?
TRISH: We moved to Louisiana in 1996 for a job opportunity for my husband Mike.
MG: In which city do you mostly reside?
TRISH: Greenwell Springs, LA
MG: What is your educational background and/or experience?
TRISH: High school graduate. All my experiences have been through opportunities that have been offered to me based on my work ethic and drive to better myself and the life of my family.
MG: Currently, where are you employed?
TRISH: Landry’s Landscape
MG: What is your job title?
TRISH: Accounts Payable Specialist/Payroll
MG: If you haven’t lived in Louisiana your entire life, what led you to move here?
TRISH: My husband is from Louisiana and he was looking for a new career change and was offered one at Fraenkel Company so we moved here in May of 1996.
MG: What is your favorite part about living here?
TRISH: The experiences and opportunities that myself and family has had along with the southern hospitality and food!!
MG: What is an event in your life that significantly changed the course of it?
TRISH: The first was the death of my dear friend Nancy and a few years later my dad.
MG: What negative impacts did that event have for you, even if only temporary?
TRISH: The numb feeling I had while I was holding their hands as they took their last breath. The world just stopped I had to tell myself to breath; I didn’t know what to do next. Even though these were some of the toughest times of my life if given the choice I would do it again. Being able to say I love you one last time makes the hurt just a little easier.
MG: What good came out of that event for you? How did it improve your life?
TRISH: I learned that you don’t wait till tomorrow because tomorrow may never come for some. Nancy was infectious, her smile, her laugh and her drive. My Dad his you can do anything attitude and the life of family gatherings. I think God puts you where you need to be. Being with Nancy and that day made me stronger, it helped me take that path once again when my Dad died and later fighting cancer myself.
MG: How do you feel you have overcome that event?
TRISH: I don’t think I have overcome these events, they live with me every day, as each phase of my life progresses, I stop and think of them both. They were both great presences in my life and there is so much I haven’t been able to share with them, but the experiences with them made me stronger. I believe I needed to go through these experiences to be strong enough to face my own challenges but I know they are watching over me.
MG: What advice would you give to someone who is going through something similar?
TRISH: Take time and be present in your life and the lives of those you love. No one will be here forever so make the time that you do have worth remembering.
MG: When was a time that you stuck up for yourself and how did that enhance your life?
TRISH: For the first time in my life, I quit a job. It was a toxic situation that didn’t appear would get any better so for my own self-worth I made the choice that it was time to move on. I am now in a better place with wonderful co-workers.
MG: What quality about yourself are you most grateful for?
TRISH: Generosity
MG: What about yourself are you most proud?
TRISH: Staying positive in the face of adversity
MG: What do you consider to be your life motto?
TRISH: Start each day with a smile, put one foot in front of the other and keep going no matter what life throws at you. Remember it’s only a moment in time it this too shall pass.
MG: Who inspires, or has inspired, you in your life?
TRISH: My dad, he had a you-can-do-anything-you-put-your-mind-to attitude. My dad had arthritis in his spine causing an arch in his back and minimal movement in his neck, but despite these things he never stopped even through his most painful days. I had peers that would laugh at my dad or call him hunch back but he would tell my brothers and I it was because they were uneducated or not being raised properly. It wasn’t until I was about 10 that I found out my dad couldn’t read. This amazed me, how could someone who couldn’t read do all the things that my dad did? It was determination and the not quit attitude.
MG: Here can be the hardest one for many, tell us about yourself. Anything additional you want to share? It can be anything from your favorite recipe to the worst time of your life. Anything more you want to share with us.
TRISH: I am 51 years old; I have been married to my husband Mike for 25 years together for 30 years. We have 2 children a daughter Amanda and son Johnathan, and a I am a grandmother to 3 Chloe, Alistair and Oliver.
I am my mom’s caregiver; she has been living with my husband and I for the past 8 years. My mom has dementia and many other health problems. Even though this is the toughest thing I have ever done in my life I feel all my prior experiences have made me strong enough to handle it.
I am a SURVIVOR!!! I have fought and beat breast cancer twice! My family is my driving force. They have always been by my side to encourage and pick me up when I was down. My rock was my daughter Amanda, the love, dedication and devotion she has shown me during my fights has been beyond anything I could have imagined.