"Cancer survivors keep aspiring to reach new heights" - Salt Lake Tribune, August 15, 2010

Snowbird • Determination being a trait of cancer survivors, 79-year-old Naomi Sattelberg challenged herself Saturday to hike to the “Survivors at the Summit” celebration atop Hidden Peak from Snowbird’s base in less than four hours.  She beat her deadline, just as she has beaten breast cancer for the past 15 years.  “I’m slow and every year I get slower,” said the Olympus Cove resident, a regular at the annual Cancer Wellness House fundraising event, now in its 14th year.  But with moral support from friend Melissa Carter, Sattelberg pushed herself to make the 3,000-foot ascent on a bluebird late summer day.  “This [hike] shows that you need to take time to accomplish something challenging and to fight difficult things that come up,” she said, displaying an attitude common among the cancer survivors and family members assembled on the mountaintop. “Every year, it’s very touching.”

Fisher Goble, 9, provided the most touching moments Saturday. He read from “A Book About My Dad,” which he wrote and gave to his father, Ed, just before one of the nine surgeries Ed has undergone in the past year after being diagnosed with skin and kidney cancer (following a stroke).  “My dad is a very hard worker … My dad is very strong …My dad loves to hunt and fish … My dad, he is a fighter, a warrior and a survivor,” the Woods Cross boy said. “He has the heart of a champion. I love you dad. Love, Fisher.”

A mountain of a man who made a name for himself as an arm wrestler, Ed Goble was not the only one wiping away tears when his son finished.  “I walk around proud as a peacock with that book,” he said, supporting his weight with a cane as he went on to recite a lengthy poem about never giving up. Through it all, Goble added, he has learned “to appreciate every day, every minute, because all we have is time. When the kids want to go fishing for an hour, I take them fishing for an hour. Time is so important — what we do with it and who we spend it with.”  His message clearly resonated with a sizable crowd gathered on the peak, surrounded on three sides by nearly 1,000 fluttering yellow flags purchased on behalf of people touched by cancer.

Some flags bore the name of the famous — Utah businessman Larry H. Miller, singer Sheryl Crowe, cyclist Lance Armstrong, actor Patrick Swayze. Others named everyday people. A few simply paid homage to “Mom” or “Friends,” “Memories” and “Life.” Still others gave thanks, such as one to “All Who Are Working for a Cure.”

Kim Ulmer, 39, of Bountiful, spent part of the ceremony chasing after her toddler, McKinley, just 5 months old — the youngest of four children — when Kim found out she had breast cancer.  “Cancer changes your perspective and teaches you what’s important,” she said. “When I was diagnosed, I realized that all that mattered was my family. You think about what you’re spending your time on.”   The Cancer Wellness House helped Ulmer and her young family to come to grips with her disease, which seems to be in check now after chemotherapy treatment that ended in mid-May.

It also has helped Salt Lake City resident Val Callanan, who has lived with cancer for 12 years but recently lost a cousin to multiple myeloma.  “This is emotional,” said the frail but hardy white-haired woman. “It never gets easier. You’re just thankful for every day.”

Cancer survivor Ed Goble hugs his wife, Connie, while receiving a standing ovation from the "Survivors at the Summit" crowd after sharing the story of his fight to beat cancer. Goble and his family are involved in programs offered by Salt Lake City's Cancer Wellness House, sponsor of the 14th annual fund-raising hike to the top of Snowbird's Hidden Peak.  (I know Ed from the group I attend.  This was a very touching moment, my heart goes out to him and his family!!!)