McMinnville, Oregon Rallies Around Special Grad

Brandy Stroeder, Awaiting A Lifesaving Transplant, Inspires Others On Graduation

By Lindsay Wise

of The Oregonian staff

McMINNVILLE -- The day before her high school graduation, 18-year-old Brandy Stroeder sits on the front steps of her house, trying to imagine where she will be in the fall when her classmates head off to new lives at colleges and jobs.

Wearing a bright blue shirt, long black skirt and sunglasses perched on her blond hair, Brandy looks every inch a normal teen pondering her future -- except for a thin intravenous tube that snakes out of her small designer backpack and under her shirt, helping to keep her alive.

"I wish that I was able to apply for scholarships and apply to colleges like everyone else," said Brandy, who wants to become a chef. "I wish I could say I'm going to this school and I'm going to major in this subject, but that has to wait. I know what I want to do (after graduation), but I feel like right now I'm not going anywhere until this is all over."

Brandy has cystic fibrosis, an incurable genetic disorder that has brought on liver cirrhosis and has caused her lungs to fill with mucus. Without a combined lung and liver transplant, Brandy is unlikely to live more than two more years. The Oregon Health Plan has refused to pay for the rare procedure, and Brandy is suing the state for coverage. She learned Wednesday that officials will allow her to be evaluated for the operation, at least giving her the chance of being put on an organ transplant waiting list.

This news has helped to keep a troop of friends and strangers energized and hopeful as they rush to raise funds for Brandy's surgery.

In historic downtown McMinnville, nearly every local business displays a clear plastic donation cup with Brandy's picture on it. Distributed by Brandy's classmates, the cups are the most visible part of a larger effort that has pulled the 25,000-person town together.

"I put money in every jar I see. Just think: A few dimes from each person and we have it. If more people band together here, we can give this girl a life," said Claudette Davis, sitting with a friend in the Union Block Coffee shop. "She'll be OK. I know she is. Everybody's going to help her. She's a fighter, that little girl."

Down the street at Rumors hair salon, stylist Melanie Rummel wants to hold a marathon haircutting session to raise money.

"I can't personally give what I'd like to, so it's a way that I'm working and I can help," said Rummel, who lives next door to the Stroeders.

At the high school, everyone from the Science Club to the Key Club donated money they'd been raising all year for their own groups, says Brandy's school counselor, Lan Carpenter. "We thought we'd take it on as a McMinnville challenge."

Carol Nelson, a longtime family friend, said she is planning a spaghetti feed and auction for July 14. A car wash and a giant garage sale are in the works too.

"Even if the state doesn't do anything, we're gonna work our rear ends off till we beat this thing," Nelson said. "Brandy's going to live to be an old lady."

Donations are pouring in from all over. The Willamette Valley Medical Center gave $3,000 to match a gift from the McMinnville Physician's Association. Brandy's brother Casey, a fourth-grader at Cook Elementary School, raised $400 by organizing a bottle drive and talking to his classmates.

Domino's Pizza stores in the Portland area and McMinnville will donate $1 to Brandy for every regular-price large pizza sold starting Friday and continuing for at least two weeks, said Sean Foley, director of operations, whose own son survived leukemia four years ago.

Friday evening, many of Brandy's supporters joined her Class of 2000 in the high school stadium, where Brandy held hands and traded hugs with some of the 314 other classmates waiting to graduate. She wore a gold medal on a ribbon, not for her 3.2 grade-point average or extra credits but for the school's Courage and Achievement Award. She shared the honor with Lindsey Aster, who survived a brain aneurysm in eighth grade. Lindsey came out of a coma after two months and learned to talk and walk again.

"I know she's fought harder than I have," Brandy said about Lindsey. "I would look at her as my hero or as a very inspirational person."

On Friday, though, the 4,000 in the audience screamed and cheered for Brandy, who held up her diploma, raised her fist and gave a shout. Her classmates gave her a standing ovation as she strutted off the stage.

And when the moment finally arrived, Brandy's mother didn't cry. She said she had done enough of that. Instead, she yelled encouragement, proud that her daughter has accomplished a lifetime goal by graduating.

"I don't think it's a first," said Karen Stroeder. "I think it's a continuation for her to keep pushing because she's always having to push. She's an adult now. That's the way I look at it. It's her life, and she'll live it the way she wants to."

You can reach Lindsay Wise at 503-294-5976 or by e-mail at lindsaywise@news.oregonian.com.

Copyright © 2000 Oregon Live.

This article posted June 21, 2000.