Bryan Volunteer Minnie Stephens Supports Cancer Care

You might say Minnie Stephens was born with an appreciation for health care. Her mother gave birth to her early and breach, in their Palmyra, Nebraska, living room. The doctor made a house call; her father had to make a very fast run — on dirt roads — to the Syracuse hospital to fetch an incubator.

During her 45-plus years at the UNL College of Agriculture, she assisted a professor who worked on poultry health and disease research.

Today, Minnie, a long-time volunteer at Bryan Medical Center, says virtually all of her health care needs have been taken care of at Bryan, including the discovery of a breast lump during a routine mammogram. So it may not be too surprising that she is leaving an estate gift to support future cancer care in our region.

Cancer Caught Early

"In 2015, a mammogram revealed a lump," she says. "I had a biopsy at Bryan right away. It was discovered to be stage one cancer, so the lump was removed."

Luckily for Minnie, the cancer was caught very early; she has been cancer free for 7 years this April. And this brings us to the "why" of Minnie's estate gift for the future April Sampson Cancer Center.

"Five days a week, I had to travel 10 miles from my home to my radiology appointments with Dr. Kam Chiu. I found myself looking for different routes so I didn't have to see the same scenery every day," she says with a laugh.

Minnie noted that she also had to travel regularly to see Dr. Nathan Green, her oncologist, although that wasn't as far to drive.

In the Best of Hands with Providers Who Care

"I just think it will be nice to have something built where everything is encompassed in one building. It would have been wonderful to have had everything done in one place. A facility where everything is taken care of — and to know that you are in the best of hands with people who care, and who make sure you do stay healthy — that is something I want to support."

Minnie also says it's important to her that she can help others. "It's nice to know that you might be helping someone down the road after you're gone," she says.