RIP Holley Kitchen, the MBC Mom Who Reached Millions

We were so very sorry to learn Holley died today, January 12, 2016.  She was 43 years old.

“Our hearts are broken as we share the news that Holley peacefully passed away early this morning,” writes Holley Facebook page friend and administrator. “She was surrounded by love, as she has been in every moment of her life. . .Details regarding Holley’s services will be forthcoming. Please respect the privacy of those closest to Holley as they grieve and make all the necessary arrangements. Thank you for your unending support and love.”  ‪#‎Lifer‬

Anyone who wishes to support the Kitchen family financially, can find the links here. Our hearts go out to Holley’s family and friends. She was a true gem.

“I didn’t know my risk for reoccurrence or what metastatic disease even meant,” she told PEOPLE magazine about the impetus for her famous video. “I didn’t want someone feeling like I did upon reoccurrence,” she said. “You get a cancer diagnosis and then you get a re-diagnosis and it’s a punch in the gut.”

Millions of people around the world learned what metastatic breast cancer is thanks to Holley’s decision to share her story.

Thank you, Holley. May God bless and keep your family.

 

Here’s our original post about Holley’s video:

Holley Kitchen’s viral video tells her metastatic breast cancer story…and is educating millions of people around the world about Stage IV breast cancer. Since being posted on June 5, the video has gotten more than 10 million views and 400,000 shares. You can watch it on YouTube here.

Holley’s metastatic breast cancer video has been seen by millions.

Holley lives in Cedar Park, Texas. She told her story to KVUE’s Terri Gruca. “Holley was diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer at age 39,” Gruca told viewers. “After a double mastectomy, chemo and radiation she thought she was cancer free. A year later she found out it had spread to her spine and bones.”

“I think it resonates with people because it’s honest,” Holley told the reporter. ” It’s what people don’t want to say and what people don’t want to hear,” she said.

We love Holley’s sense of humor and how she personalized her story. She’s also self-deprecating–she stresses that she’s not trying to make people feel bad–her mission is education. Like so many of us, Holley didn’t know what metastatic breast cancer was or how people got it until her own diagnosis.

Holley’s video shows what one person can do. Holley did a great job of educating herself about metastatic breast cancer. She is obviously very familiar with “The 13 Facts Everyone Should Know About Metastatic Breast Cancer.” Thank you,  Holley,  for the shout out to MBCN.org at the very end of the video!

We also love Holley’s term for someone living with metastatic breast cancer: #lifer. You can find Holley’s group” Facebook page here.

 

….and now BuzzFeed has picked up Holley’s story: http://www.buzzfeed.com/juliegerstein/this-womans-breast-cancer-journey-will-leave-you-speechless