MTSO The Story : Page 11
COMMUNITY Sign of success g Lancaster was happy to help Riverside explain how her life was saved trips in the twomonths following the stroke. InMay, she went to Dallas to attend daugh- ter Jocelyn’s graduation fromSouthern Methodist University. In June, she flew to Egypt for a long-planned conference. June was also when Lancaster launched her second career as amulti-media celebrity. Shortly aer her hospital stay, she was ap- proached by Riverside about participating in an ad campaign touting the procedure that led to her re- covery. “I was cer- tainly surprised,” she said. “But I’ll tell you, I was so grateful at that point for all the hospital had done, it was, ‘Yes, I’ll be glad to help you.’” anks to amalfunctioning camera, they had no photos of Jocelyn’s SMUgraduation, but there was a nice photo of the Lancasters’ other daughter, Kendra, graduating from Westerville SouthHigh School, so the com- mercial crew just shot that. For Lancaster’s billboard photo, she and the family dog, 8-year-oldHunter, posed by a streaminWesterville’s Inniswood Gar- dens. “I had a student who caught me in the hallway and said, ‘Are you on a billboard Downtown?’ I said, ‘Yeah,’ and he said, ‘I almost swerved off the road when I saw that.’” Lancaster, who was in “really good health” before the stroke, is now walking 2 miles a day for exercise, though she’s no longer allowed to li weights as she once did.Hermemory didn’t return to pre-stroke levels as quickly as she might have liked, “but I don’t feel like I have any of those problems now.” But thememory of the stroke itself has receded. “I spent the first couple ofmonths just occasionally being really hit with what the alternative could have been,” she said. “ere’s a lot of stuff about salvation in theology, and I’d never re- ally hadmy life saved before. And to have that, I think you do realize what that thankfulness is about.” Among other things, she’s thankful “You don’t ordinarily get to take pets in A television commercial was filmed in the Lancasters’ home.at was augmented by radio and print advertising, including billboards all over town and even signs in- side Riverside’s elevators. In the TV spot, Lancastermentions her trip to Dallas for Jo- celyn’s graduation, and the camera focuses on a snapshot of her daughter in a cap and gown—except it’s not Jocelyn. there,” she said, “but we got permission to takeHunter.e crew lovedmy dog.” As for all the notoriety, Lancaster said, “It’s almost gotten to the point of being em- barrassing. I had a student who caughtme in the hallway and said, ‘Are you on a bill- board Downtown?’ I said, ‘Yeah,’ and he said, ‘I almost swerved off the road when I saw that.’” that her recovery has le her with pre- cious few reminders of all that tran- spired on April 15. “Most days, I have to remindmyself that I’ve had a problem.” ose, presumably, are the days she does- n’t drive past any billboards.g THE STORY gWinter 08/09 9
Publication List
