Tyler

By MALENA OGLES
Staff Writer

Children laughed and scurried through Tyler Rose Garden on Sunday carrying treasures of pinwheels, balloon animals and magnets all made and decorated with the help of a grandmother or grandfather.

But greater than any treasure, 75-year-old Jerry Helbig said, were the memories she and her grandchildren could share from spending time together during the Cancer Foundation For Life, Grandparents Day Celebration.

Diagnosed with cancer in August of 1996, Mrs. Helbig said she was told by doctors that she would have only have 15 months to live.

"They're 7 and 5 years old, so I would have never seen either one of them," she said.

A member of CFFL, FitSteps for Life, Mrs. Helbig said she exercised regularly and followed her doctor's orders.

Her cancer went into remission and she now spends every moment she can playing and spending time with her granddaughters Abigail and Aubrey Helbig, who call their grandmother "Mimi."

"They put hearts over the I's in Mimi," Mrs. Helbig said.

Sunday, "Mimi" watched the girls go from booth to booth making bookmarks and masks.

"I've done the bookmarks magnets. I've done everything except the frames," 7-year-old Aubrey said on her way to another booth.

"This has been really nice," Mrs. Helbig said rushing after her granddaughter.

The CFFL program is the only program of its kind in the nation, providing fitness centers for cancer patients and survivors to exercise.

"Many of our participants are grandparent-aged and we thought hosting a Grandpar-ents' Day event would be a perfect way to give back to the community and say thank you for their support," CFFL director Pamela Lisner said. "If it goes well hopefully we can make it an annual event."

Started by retired Tyler oncologist Dr. Gary Kimmel, CFFL started out of his basement, the program garnered interests of the local medical community and expanded into churches, hospitals and community centers in East Texas.

Now, there are currently eight chapters of CFFL in East Texas and nine in Dallas.

Studies show that moderate exercise can reduce many symptoms, such as nausea and fatigue, which are associated with cancer treatment.

The program costs nothing for its patients and gives them an indefinite membership.

Kimmel, who attended the CFFL with his grandson Noah, said Sunday's event was a way to get families together.

"It's a celebration to get children and grandparents involved," he said, adding that many of the individuals invited were cancer survivors.

Jaden Jeter of Chapel Hill, came with her grandmother, who she insists on calling "Ma," to Grandparents' Day.

With a butterfly painted on her face and glue stick in hand, the 4-year-old set out to make her grandmother a picture frame for the refrigerator.

The magnetic frame, which Jaden decorated with flowers, hearts, and a watering can, had the words "I love my grandmother," on the bottom.

"I didn't know she could do the glue stick that well," her grandmother C.J. Ziebol said.

Too distracted by her glue stick and coloring duties to talk, Ms. Ziebol said the best part about Grandparents' Day is getting to watch them.

Also being watched was magician David McCullough, who was handing out every kind of balloon animal imaginable from a green alien driving a racecar to a moose with dilapidated ears.

"He wasn't sure if he could make that one, but he did it," Ms. Ziebol said of her granddaughter's moose balloon animal request.

Susan Cole, of Tyler, and her grandson Christopher Everitt, 3, make a picture frame during National Grandparents Day. The Cancer for Life Foundation sponsored the event.
(Staff Photo by Mark Roberts)