30-Day Project

Hope in Hardship

Thanks to Liz and Shawn Beal for allowing me to photograph them and learn from them.

Liz Beal, 28, holds a bottle for her three-month-old daughter Jolie at their home in Columbia, Mo. Jolie was born six weeks premature on August 15, 2010. Shortly thereafter, Beal was diagnosed with inflammatory breast cancer, which has a 40 percent survival rate and a very high recurrence rate, she said. The fact that she and her husband were powerless to stop Jolie’s birth made having no control over the cancer easier to cope with, the Beals said.

Shawn and Liz Beal sit in a treatment room at Boone Hospital Center as she receives her fourth round of chemotherapy. Beal had her chemotherapy port inserted a week after she was diagnosed. Her surgery date, September 14, 2010, fell on the couple’s 10th wedding anniversary.

A treatment bag hangs in the chemotherapy room at Boone County Hospital Center.

Liz rests on her sofa the day after her chemotherapy treatment. She says that she is lethargic for two or three days following the treatment, but it is other medication like anti-nausea pills that make her fatigued. “We anticipated the treatment to be harder than it has been,” said Shawn.

Shawn opens the door to his two older daughters’ room to quiet them as they are supposed to be napping. Framed photos of when the two were babies hang on the wall outside their bedroom. The couple made sure to get their wills and their medical powers of attorney in order soon after the diagnosis. “Hope for the best, plan for the worst. You’ve got to plan for the worst, said Shawn.

The Beals dress their daughters Chloe, 2, Zoe, 3, and Jolie, 3 months (left to right) as they start their day. “This is our life now. We kinda worked our new life into our old one,” said Liz. “It really should be harder than it was, I would think.”

Liz Beal smiles as she leads her daughters to class at Blue Ridge Christian Church amid a congregation sporting breast cancer support bandannas as a surprise for her. The Beals say they draw strength from their trust in God. “I don’t think we could do this without faith. Definitely not,” said Beal.