So do not fear, for I am with you;
Do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10
There’s a charming space nestled between the Mountain States Tumor Institute (MSTI) and St. Luke’s Boise Medical Center. Paved in red brick, surrounded by shade giving trees, and tucked amidst beautifully landscaped grounds, the area provides a tranquil refuge. And, if visitors pay close attention to their surroundings, they’ll see a small plaque pointing the way up a walled walkway to St. Luke’s Kissler Chapel. As one winds up the little path, the lovely yet almost hidden chapel becomes visible, beckoning distressed souls.
MSTI’s Chaplain Kelly Loy described the symbolic importance of the Chapel:
Spirituality is always important to healing, in its broadest sense of human spirituality, and in particular ways unique to individuals with particular religious beliefs or spiritual practices. Cancer patients don’t always realize that their spiritual side can be supported strongly from within the medical treatment team, if they want that support. Not all cancer clinics have a chaplain, but all cancer and medical care strives to include spiritual care and recognizes that spiritual care can be very important. Our MSTI clinic does have a dedicated chaplain to respond to spiritual needs and to provide helpful interventions affirming spiritual strength, hope, and courage, which can strengthen coping with treatment.
It was into the charming, light filled sanctuary of the Kissler Chapel that Steve invited loved ones to participate in a prayer circle and healing ritual led by Reverend Loy, the MSTI clinic chaplain. Kelly Loy had first introduced Steve to the blessing service in a small private ceremony held in one of the MSTI consult rooms. That initial experience, with Julene, Karlie, and a close family friend, had profoundly touched Steve. He wanted to do it again, but in a bigger way.
Reverend Loy encourages patients to bring whoever they wish to the services. She believes that confronting uncertainty or pain with bold faith and strong spirits can decrease pain and increase strength and hope. And seeing your support system gathered all together and receiving everyone’s good intention, prayer, blessing, and encouragement at the same time creates a unique and powerful moment in anyone’s life.
So, even though this ritual was deeply personal and spiritual, Steve invited everyone following his CaringBridge posts to join him in the service. Family, friends, co-workers, fellow athletes, neighbors, and acquaintances were all included in Steve’s circle of love. And people from all corners of his life came together to support him in a circle of prayer. Two separate ceremonies were held, one in April and one in July, and the little chapel filled up for both.
At the April ceremony, Steve and Reverend Loy stood near the entrance of the Chapel, and greeted the supporters as they arrived. The guests filtered into the welcoming space, and the solemn quiet of the sanctuary was flooded with warmth and love as the room filled with the hum of good wishes.
When the stream of arriving guests slowed to a trickle, Reverend Loy moved to the front of the Chapel and encouraged everyone to find a place in the pews. Steve sat in the front with Julene at his side. Sitting behind him, his friends and family were confronted with the reality of how thin the disease and harsh treatments had left his body. And still, his erect posture displayed his incredibly resilient strength, bringing comfort to the aching hearts gathered in support of him.
Reverend Loy ushered the reverent, sacred, and spiritual into the room by opening the ceremony with the ringing of a soft bell and a simple prayer of healing, trust, and acceptance. She then invited each guest to introduce him-and-herself. The diversity of those present revealed Steve’s expansive circle of connections. After the introductions, Steve stood and thanked everyone for coming. And true to his nature, his thank you was sincere and humble; his appreciation was heartfelt and genuine.
And in his thank you, Steve did something else that was characteristically Steve-O. He brought everyone into his inner circle. Steve was inclusive; there were no outsiders when he was present. And for this gathering, he took special care to introduce a few of his broadly connected associates who might have been feeling awkward or out of place amongst his tightly knit family and longtime friends. He did this through his beautiful gift of storytelling, sharing glimpses of some of the very special times he had experienced with those he introduced. After his generous words, everyone in the room truly felt like family.
Reverend Loy then stepped forward to begin the next stage of the ceremony. She passed paper and pen to each guest and asked the group to first spend a few minutes in personal, quiet reflection, and then to write a short message of healing, hope and inspiration. It could be anything: a line of poetry, a reminder of a special shared moment, a word. The personal notes of encouragement were to be collected for Steve to read when he felt that the time was right.
After the guests had finished writing their messages, Steve moved forward and stood beside an ornately carved gourd placed on a table at the front of the chapel. This unique object was the vessel he had chosen to hold the special messages from his loved ones. It was an unusual choice, one that held great meaning to Steve, and it deserved an explanation.
Among the many things that Steve did to support the Boise community was his service to the Idaho Foodbank. He had been a member of the Board of Directors between 2000 and 2006 and he served as the Board President for the 2003 – 2004 year. The Idaho Foodbank is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and the largest hunger relief organization in Idaho. When Steve’s term of service was complete, the organization presented him with the artistically carved gourd, symbolic of the nourishment that had been so effectively distributed to the less fortunate through Steve’s service. He cherished the gourd as a remembrance of the time he spent as the organization’s leader.
After Steve had shared the background story of the gourd, and Reverend Loy had collected the notes and placed them in the container, the next part of the service was the healing ritual: a blessing and anointing with oil. Kelly moved to the altar and the room grew silent: some fixed on the unfolding ritual, others in deep prayer. Steve faced the Reverend, head bowed:
God in heaven, stir up in Steve the healing that is needed to restore his health. Strengthen him through the power of your Holy Spirit, and infuse him with peace and hope, overcoming any pain or fear, and fully trusting in your promises, through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
As she prayed, she gently anointed his head with the sacred oil. Those present in the Chapel were then invited to experience this ritual for themselves, and most, greatly moved, took their turn.
A laying on of hands was the final part of the service, and it was an especially emotional experience. Reverend Loy asked that Steve stand in the open space in the front of the Chapel, with all of his guests circled around him, holding hands, in prayer. Then the circle closed around Steve, with the group of loved ones pressing together, hands outstretched, reaching to touch him. It was in this position, friends and family clustered tightly, surrounding Steve, love flowing, that Reverend Loy prayed the final prayer of healing and hope, and then again, softly rang the bell to bring the ceremony to a close.
Reverend Loy has said, “the rituals themselves are always unique to the person involved, which is exciting and creative in shaping the time spent together.” The truth of those words filled and enriched MSTI’s Kissler Chapel during Steve’s prayer circle ceremonies. Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote, “the man is only half himself, the other is his expression.” The physical presence of those brought together in that space – in prayer, encouragement, and healing – contributed half of the experience. And the spiritual essence of Steve, the words of greeting and prayer, the images of smiles and tears, bowed heads, and outstretched hands filled the rest of the space. It is those expressions of love that linger in the hearts of each who joined together to pray with Steve, to pray for Steve.
CaringBridge Posts
Steve Update – April 14th
By Steve Andrews — Apr 14, 2013 9:02pm
Hi Everyone!
On Friday we got great news from the Doctor. We reviewed the results of my latest CT Scan and the chemotherapy continues to shrink my tumors – the liver and lymph nodes looks much better! This shows that the chemo is working as intended. I just completed my 9th chemo session. The doctor said the most sessions I can have with this current regimen is twelve. The body can only handle so much of a particular chemo until it starts to harm the rest of the body. But the doctor said he has several other regimens to try later. My scan did show some small spots in my lungs. It’s too early to know if these are cancer or not. The spots are so small that a biopsy cannot be performed at this time. The doctors will evaluate this further after the next scan in 6 to 8 weeks.
I want to thank everyone that attended a prayer session for me at MSTI on April 1st. A special thank you goes to Kelly Loy, MSTI Chaplain, for arranging this. It was an overwhelming experience.
We just returned from Kona, Hawaii where we had a great time with good friends. You can see some pictures on this CaringBridge website.
I’m grateful to have so many family and friends supporting and praying for me. I love the scripture from 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” This fits exactly with my personal motto that “Every day is a good day. “
Graduation day for my Executive MBA is coming up on May 18th. This has been a great experience and I’ve developed a close relationship with everyone in the program. Thank you to Simplot for giving me this wonderful opportunity.
God Bless all of you,
Steve
Good Update!
By Steve Andrews — May 21, 2013 10:25pm
Hi all, It’s been awhile since I gave you an update. But in this case no news is good news! My treatments are going extremely well. I’ve been feeling stronger than ever and I’m pain free! Today I finished my eleventh (11th) chemo treatment. My 12th treatment is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, June 11th. The plan is to do a C-Scan the following week. I’m optimistic that the scan will show the tumors are small or non-existent. Overall the doctor is pleased with my progress. And he was totally shocked when I told him that I’ve been continuing my triathlon workouts, along with finishing my MBA and working full time. Last Saturday I went through graduation. My son Michael surprised me by flying in from San Jose! The MBA program was an incredible experience and I’m so glad I completed the program. I’d like to thank all of my fellow students and the BSU faculty for giving me 110% support while I battled cancer. Also I’d like to thank Simplot for sending me through the program and giving me the support to pursue this accomplishment. Karlie and I are carpooling to work this summer! She was hired as a Summer Intern in the Simplot AgriBusiness Marketing Department. This is a great opportunity for her. We are SO proud of her. I’ve had enormous support from so many of my fellow triathletes. THANK YOU SO MUCH!! Here are just a few examples: Dale raced at St. George Ironman 70.3 where he put an Ironman tattoo (temporary) on his calf with the words “SG 70.3 Steve-O”; Allan raced, finished, and thank God was not injured at the Boston Marathon. I’m glad our other Boise friends were safe too! Allan wrote “140.6 for Steve” on his arm before the race; Bailey, our incredible young friend, who raced at the ITU Worlds at San Diego. Bailey dedicated her race to me and with the help of her mother Dominique put together a touching You Tube video of the race. You can check out the photos of these wonderful people on this website. One of the side effects of chemotherapy is sensitivity to cold water. Because of this I will not be able to compete as an individual in the Boise Ironman 70.3. However, I will race as part of a relay team. Two of my good friends, Craig and Alan, have agreed to do the swim and bike portions of the race, and I’ll do the half marathon run. This is a big deal for me as I have competed in the Boise Ironman every year. My streak will continue! Hopefully next year I’ll be back racing as an individual. Faith continues to be a major part of my healing process. I continue to hear about my name being mentioned in prayers circles everywhere! Special thank you goes out to the elders at Foothills Christian Church for their continued prayers. And a big thank you to Kelly Loy, MSTI Chaplain, for her amazing support and organizing a prayer circle before each of my scans. I appreciate everyone’s prayers and good wishes. The X Factor is working!!!! I really like James 5:14-15: “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up.” Until next time,
God Bless you all!
Steve
