Julietta’s Story
Prior to October 21, 2017, Jules was enjoying the happiest time in her life - on track to graduate high school a semester early, enjoying a budding career as a singer/songwriter and singing and playing bass in a band, working as a barista, accepted to college for fall of 2018, and generally loving life and being a healthy, positive, blossoming, joyful seventeen year old.
A massive series of seizures landed her in the ER, and a suspicious CT Scan prompted transport to Children’s Hospital in Denver. Many more tests and a subsequent biopsy revealed a diagnosis of a cancerous glioma brain tumor, mostly in her right frontal lobe. At first deemed inoperable, after a great deal of research and opinions from noted specialists across the country, surgery was determined as a course of treatment, and a neurosurgeon in Denver removed most of the tumor on December 8, 2017.
She was a “rockstar” going in, during, and after the surgery with amazing courage and a sense of humor throughout. She did so well, she was discharged in three days and was able to begin recovering at home, celebrating her eighteenth birthday, graduating, and enjoying the holidays, her favorite time of the year among family and friends.
Surgery was followed by extensive radiation and chemotherapy. Julietta fought her battle with incredible fortitude, facing each day with optimism and a gracious spirit. She drew strength from family and friends who made numerous visits to the hospital, where she spent a great deal of time, battling seizures, enduring MRI’s and seemingly endless treatments. She continued to seek solace in music, singing, and playing when she was strong enough to do so, and listening to her fellow band members serenade her softly in her room when she was not. Even in her darkest hours, Julietta’s light shone brightly, creating a profound impact with her words of kindness and wisdom, bestowed so openly upon all those she met.
Tragically, due to the lack of medical advancements for surviving such a horrific disease, Julietta’s physical life ended on March 4, 2019. Her spirit lives on; in her words, her music, and her endless compassion for others, and in this organization, March Forth, that embodies her talent for collaborating with other young artists to share their creativity with the world that she sadly no longer lives in.
Jules in Wonderland
Located in Downtown Louisville, Colorado
In addition to serving as the inspiration for the piece, Jules also helped steer the artistic vision. Each piece of the mural symbolizes various aspects of Julietta’s love for the natural world as well as her resilience. The mural is located at 820 Main Street (visible on Via Artista) in Louisville, CO.
LIVING IN THE SHADOWS
From Ama Arthur-Asmah
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CANCER: THE URGENCY OF NOW
The Hammeras Group PRESENTS: An Evening with Mike Garson
Can’t view the video? Read the transcript of Julietta’s Speech