Alaskan dream: Wasilla family perseveres through mother’s cancer journey

WASILLA — Twelve years ago in Colorado, Sean Haldeman met Jenn while he was working for a plumbing company where she was the dispatcher. Sean eventually left the company for a new job and took Jenn on their first date. Three years later they married, and after Sean’s father passed away from cancer, they moved to Arizona to be closer to his mom and sisters. After a few years there, and with the news that Jenn was pregnant with their second child, the Haldemans decided to fulfill their dream of moving to Alaska. They bought a trailer, loaded up the belongings that they hadn’t sold, and drove up the Al-Can. The first plan was to live in a trailer, but they quickly realized that a child, a dog and a once again pregnant mom wouldnt work well in the confines of such a small structure.

Five and a half years since moving to the Mat-Su Valley, they are living in their own house in Meadow Lakes with three children and paying off a mortgage. Jenn, a homeschooling mom is deeply involved in her children’s lives and activities, bringing them to taekwondo, gymnastics, soccer and swimming practice and 4-H activities. Sean has been working at Slayden Plumbing and Heating for a year and does an average of three days of on, one off.

Like most people in this state, they are living the Alaskan dream. But unlike most people, the Haldemans have also spent the last two years fighting - as a family - the cancer that has persistently wreaked havoc on Jenn’s body.

First, it was stage four breast cancer. She found out after giving birth to her third child that she had 18 months to live. After chemotherapy the doctors told the family in February of 2018 that the cancer had gone dormant. Not into remission, Sean clarified — only dormant. It was too deep into her bones to ever really go away.

For the time being, life went on. In May, Sean was home on one of his week breaks and had spent his first 45 minutes touring his property with his wife.

“We walked around and looked at the chicken coop and the yard. You know after being away for three weeks you always have a honey-do list a mile long,” Sean said.

Jenn went to the kitchen to get ready to take the kids to gymnastics and taekwondo practice.

Sean was in the bedroom when the kids started screaming.

When he came out to the kitchen Jenn was slumped in the chair, shaking. He called 911, and then she stopped breathing.

“My wife had a seizure and died on our living room floor in front of the three kids,” he said.

But Jenn is a mother with a purpose. After eight minutes of Sean following the dispatcher's instructions and Jenn having no detectable pulse, she took a breath. The ambulance showed up and drove her to the hospital where tests showed that she had a tumor in her head, which, based on its size, had probably been there a while, according to the doctors. But in the previous two years of illness no one ever thought to check her brain for cancer.

Within five days, Jenn had started the first of five rounds of gamma knife radiation treatment, and then in the beginning of June, her tumor was removed. It was bigger than the doctors expected and some of the healthy brain tissue was taken during the procedure. Once she was out of the hospital, Jenn began her weekly appointments of speech, occupational and physical therapy. Sean says the best way to explain her condition is a “7-year-old in a 36-year-old body.” She has trouble with balance, struggles with chewing and forgets words that she once knew, however she has reason and understanding and still remembers who her family is.

“She could come back to who she was, and she may not come back. She may stay with the loss of cognizance [or] being able to multitask or hold a conversation,” Sean said.

The therapy helps, but appointments are difficult to acquire, and expensive. Some speech therapists are booked six months out.

A GoFundMe has been set up for the family and $11,080 has been raised of the $100,000 needed.

For now, the Haldemans appreciate the support of the people around them and Sean is thankful he is able to be with his family.

“The financial stability to be able to stay at home and help my family through this time is really been the greatest appreciation that I’ve had through everything,” he said.

To donate to the GoFundMe set up for the Haldeman family, go to:

https://uk.gofundme.com/n34qad-jenn039s-journey