Keith Kwapiszeski

Run for the Rose Hero Photo Keith Kwapiszeski
After I was diagnosed with Brain Cancer, I was thrilled to get involved with Run for the Rose. I was fortunate enough to have the means and great insurance to receive the best care at MD Anderson. After a full resection (Thank you Dr. Weinberg), I received chemo and radiation. I have been extremely blessed with clean scans ever since. That was more than 5 years ago. My wife and I decided to continue living our lives with our two beautiful boys and one darling daughter.

My goal was to actually run in the race with my wife and finish the 5k. I was thrilled when my 3 and half year old son Kade, ran the entire 1k family walk with his Nanna. My wife and I met Kade as he was turning into the 5k section of the track, and he was so excited that we “caught up to him”. I will never forget finishing the race with my wife and son by my side.

As many of you know, living with Cancer is extremely difficult. I have cried many times, and don’t know what I would have done without the support of my wife and family. I live and think that Cancer is out of my head, and my life. There are many times that it creeps back into my fears, and my wife and I continually have to deal with that. Neither one of us signed up for this, but it is now a part of our lives. In many ways being diagnosed with cancer was an eye opener me. You begin to prioritize things differently. Things you may have seen as important, are not anymore. And if you are lucky, the things that should be important your life will become very clear.

This world lost a great man on March 24th, 2014. Keith passed away at home surrounded by his loving family.