By Neil Pierson

Sammamish resident Larry Church was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia more than a year and a half ago, and the situation quickly dete-riorated into a life-threatening battle.

Church underwent chemotherapy as part of his treatment for the disease, which attacks the body’s white blood cells.

Advances in medication have greatly increased the long-term sur-vival rate for CML patients, but nothing was working for Church.

He recently got a stem cell transplant and is in the midst of a 100-day isolation period at the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle.

Transplant patients have a high risk of infection, so keeping bacteria at bay is a crucial part of recovery. His wife, Tara, will be

his full-time caregiver once he’s able to leave the hospital.

However, the cost of the pro-cedure is taking its toll on the Church family.

Larry had to leave his job as head butcher at the Klahanie QFC store, and will be losing his

employer-based insurance in September.

With Tara at his side every day, she’s at risk of losing her job as the head cook at Issaquah High School.

It was a conundrum that drove people like Kathy Boll and Karen Yose

into action.Boll and Yose have known

Tara Church for many years; they’re all congregants at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Duthie Hill Road. Boll calls the couple “a good friend of the family,” noting that Tara helped her with her chil-dren when they were babies.

“Initially, I think a lot of

people kind of stepped up to see what they could do to help, knowing there would be a huge

financial need,” Boll said.“Losing your insurance when

you have leukemia is not a good

deal,” Yose said. “They have the

COMMUNITY8 l August 28, 2013 SAMMAMISH REVIEW

8

Photo by Neil PiersonRiley Dieffenbach, left, and Katie Braden share a laugh while learning how to open lock-ers on Aug. 23 at Beaver Lake Middle School. Dieffenbach and Braden were part of a huge group of new students and incoming sixth-graders who attended the school’s ori-entation “scavenger hunt.” School officials separated the students into small groups and had eighth-graders lead them around the building. They learned several things, including what sports the school offers, when daily announcements are made, how to check out library books and where fees are paid.

Time to learn about lockers

By Neil Pierson

With the start of the 2013-14 school year on the immedi-ate horizon, several students at Eastside Catholic School and Skyline High School are looking to make an impression on their first days back in the classroom.

Fifteen students from Eastside Catholic, and another eight from Skyline, participated in a popu-lar and long-running leadership camp known as Mount Adams, one of six camps held over the summer with the support of the Association of Washington School Principals.

The Mount Adams camp took place July 18-23 at the Cispus Learning Center near Randle. The six-day event puts high-school students in a communal environment where they not only share sleeping quarters and meals, but learn a lot about each other and how to affect positive change within their schools.

Julia Troy, who will be a

senior at Eastside Catholic, par-ticipated in the camp for a sec-ond straight year. She said this time around was a bit different because she didn’t have to spend so much time learning to feel comfortable around new people. This year, the central focus was on knowing herself as a leader.

There’s no requirement for camp participants to hold an elected office within their stu-dent government, although they are recommended and registered as part of an official student del-egation.

Troy will serve as the senior class vice president at ECS, and she said she has grown much more comfortable with leader-ship roles. As a freshman, she took cues from student-body leaders and felt they were mak-ing a big impact on the school.

“I think it has helped that both of my parents are natural lead-ers, are talkative and outgoing,”

Area students take charge as leaders at summer camp

See LEAD, Page 9

Photo by Neil PiersonFrom left, Addy Boll, Emma Boll, Olivia Jones and Peyton Westwood help sell baked goods and treats on Aug. 23 during a community yard sale fundraiser.

Community steps up to help man with leukemia

How to helpAnyone interested in

making a donation or bid-ding on auction items to help Sammamish resident Larry Church can go online to www.helphopelive.org and enter Church’s name in the “Find a Patient” box on the home page.

See SALE, Page 9