To My Mother

My mother was a beautiful, talented lady not only on the outside but even more so on the inside. She was a nationally known artist. More importantly, she was the best mother anybody could ever ask for. She put her whole heart and soul into everything she did, raising her family, as an artist, as a wife, as a teacher and as a friend. She always tried to give back to the society and make a difference in other’s lives and she made sure my brothers and I knew the value of giving back. Unfortunately, she did not live long enough to see the result of her training. I lost my mother very suddenly 14 years ago to undetected heart disease. One day I was sharing my future educational plan with her and the next day I ran home with a broad smile on my face to give her the happy news about my success, and she was gone. It took me years to accept the fact that she is gone. Honestly, it has not sunk in yet. I still think she is on an art exhibition trip on the other side of the world and I will see her soon.

After she was gone I automatically stepped into her motherly role at home. I do not think I knew what I was supposed to do but I tried to always remember how she handled each situation one at the time and I still do that.

I remember when I was only about 5-6 years old talking to her about my future goals and plans for life. The one I remember vividly was that I wanted to save lives and make a difference in my society. She always told me that God has created each one of us for a purpose and reminded me that I will know what my calling is in the future. After her death, I decided to make that dream a reality. I always knew I would start a charitable organization. I expected that dream to become a reality when I am in my 50’s and 60’s but life has opened this opportunity to me earlier than expected.

When I lost a very dear friend of mine who was like a second mom to me unexpectedly to oral cancer, I decided this is my time and calling to do something. I lost my mother and a dear friend to undetected killer diseases. That shows that there was not enough information and knowledge to raise any concern before it was too late. I have learned not many people know much about oral cancer yet we lose one person every hour of every day to this silent killer.

That is why I started The Fight Oral Cancer Foundation myself. My mission is to raise awareness and promote early detection as these are the keys to fighting oral cancer. The other part of my effort through the Fight Oral Cancer Foudnation is focused on raising funds for research to help stop this silent killer.

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Together we fight oral cancer. Together we save a life every hour.