Small town. Big support.

Friends of Deborah Lukeheart shave their heads to show support for her cancer treatment.

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 "All the guys were saying, 'if you lose your hair we will shave our heads,'” said Deborah Lukehart.  “We were all sitting there having a beer one day when our friend, who is a barber, told us we should all go to his shop and he’d shave our heads for free; so we did."

Lukehart has lived in Page since 1989 and has worked at the Lake Powell Golf course for ten years. She remains perplexed by the bold gesture her friends conducted as a show of support and cameraderie to the expected effects of her chemotherapy.

The coworkers and friends of Lukehart who, without hesitation, joined the ceremonial shaving event are Steve Dordan, Jim Davis, Larry Evans, Lynn Hunter, Greg Goss, and Gordon Mahon. Modern day activism, promoting support and bringing awareness to the reality of cancer, can be found on t-shirts boldly printed with  "Cancer sucks" or  on bumper stickers silently shouting, "I hate cancer."

There is no shortage for those who hate cancer. Comparatively, there is no shortage of those who love and support those battling cancer. The human race, in all its intricacies and complexities, responds to hardship differently based on individuals. No two humans have the same reaction when faced with adversity. The regrettable statistics of cancer in America in which an estimated 12.7 million people each year are diagnosed with cancer, is proof that the disease is a hardship that clouds above them all.

With the small town support from close, committed friends, as well as the financial support from The Cancer Outreach Center of Page Arizona, Lukehart's cancer story ceased to be about cancer and became one of support. With radiation lasting a challenging four months and demanding constant travel back and forth from Flagstaff, Lukehart's journey depicts exactly what you and I hope we would have in a similar situation: strength.

"There’s so many people who have it so much worse,” said Lukeheart. “I guess I just feel lucky." One brief face-to-face interaction with Lukehart will undoubtedly leave you feeling honored and recharged with fresh perspective. Her unmatched wits and unwavering positivity are just the characteristic "trick" (as she calls it) to keep strong in the fight. Though Lukehart finds it surprising at the massive amount of support she received from the town,  Hunter speaks for group by saying, "It’s really the least we could do."

Lukehart's view on her own attitude is equally as charming as self-motivated,

"I have got to be positive; if i'm not, I've got this whole line of people behind me who will kick my fanny."