Spotlights
Humans of St. Norbert: Katy Kane '23
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Student
Humans of St. Norbert: Katy Kane '23
Humans of St. Norbert:
“When I was in high school, Hazel’s dad was my high school soccer coach. Going into sophomore year he asked me, ‘We are looking for a babysitter for someone to watch Hazel. Do you think you could do it over the summer?’ I said yes! We became so close, I would spend a lot of time with her and have sleepovers. After three years of watching [her and her siblings], I stopped but I still went over and had playdates with them or we went camping.
“I was downstairs in my room and I could hear my mom having a phone conversation upstairs and I immediately got a sick feeling. I literally felt like it was about Hazel. After she hung up, I went upstairs and my mom told me, ‘I don't want you to freak out, but Hazel is getting tested for cancer.’ Four days later she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. They couldn’t go to daycare because of COVID and she was so sick from chemo and her immune system was so weak that she had to be isolated.
“When all of this happened, I basically just decided [to help]. They needed someone home with the kids all day so I emailed my professors and I got all my classes moved online for the fall 2020 semester and I stayed home with the kids. I did it in the spring of 2021 as well. I was really lucky that the school allowed me to do that. I am officially back in-person this year and so happy to be back because I was basically a stay-at-home mom for a year. Hazel is now in-person for first grade and her brother is in 4K so we are getting back to normal.
“The hardest part [of the experience] was that she took a steroid medicine that really messed with her emotions. When I would get there in the morning, she would just cry. She wouldn’t talk to me or look at me. She would pretend I wasn't there and when her parents left she would cry and cry and cry. That was hard for me emotionally because I was giving up my college experience, I was giving up my whole life to make her feel better and I wasn’t making her feel better. It was hard to follow the same rules and treat her the same knowing what she was going through.
“[After SNC,] I am now planning to get a master’s to become a child life specialist. I sometimes sit back and can't even believe how much the last year changed my life.” – Katy Kane ’23
“When I was in high school, Hazel’s dad was my high school soccer coach. Going into sophomore year he asked me, ‘We are looking for a babysitter for someone to watch Hazel. Do you think you could do it over the summer?’ I said yes! We became so close, I would spend a lot of time with her and have sleepovers. After three years of watching [her and her siblings], I stopped but I still went over and had playdates with them or we went camping.
“I was downstairs in my room and I could hear my mom having a phone conversation upstairs and I immediately got a sick feeling. I literally felt like it was about Hazel. After she hung up, I went upstairs and my mom told me, ‘I don't want you to freak out, but Hazel is getting tested for cancer.’ Four days later she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. They couldn’t go to daycare because of COVID and she was so sick from chemo and her immune system was so weak that she had to be isolated.
“When all of this happened, I basically just decided [to help]. They needed someone home with the kids all day so I emailed my professors and I got all my classes moved online for the fall 2020 semester and I stayed home with the kids. I did it in the spring of 2021 as well. I was really lucky that the school allowed me to do that. I am officially back in-person this year and so happy to be back because I was basically a stay-at-home mom for a year. Hazel is now in-person for first grade and her brother is in 4K so we are getting back to normal.
“The hardest part [of the experience] was that she took a steroid medicine that really messed with her emotions. When I would get there in the morning, she would just cry. She wouldn’t talk to me or look at me. She would pretend I wasn't there and when her parents left she would cry and cry and cry. That was hard for me emotionally because I was giving up my college experience, I was giving up my whole life to make her feel better and I wasn’t making her feel better. It was hard to follow the same rules and treat her the same knowing what she was going through.
“[After SNC,] I am now planning to get a master’s to become a child life specialist. I sometimes sit back and can't even believe how much the last year changed my life.” – Katy Kane ’23