Abbie, Mike and Sophie!

A pre-K teacher in the Philadelphia School District for years, Lynda Soroka led a healthy life, she never drank or smoked and maintained a healthy diet.
In January of 2008, when her recurring problem with back pain was accompanied by a loss of appetite, she would soon hear the news of a tumor on her pancreas.
Doctors were hopeful to perform a full Whipple surgery, but unfortunately Lynda was not a candidate as the disease had spread.
She was given 6-12 months, a bit of information that only child Abbie wouldn't let the doctor tell her.
She decided to take part in a clinical trial at the Fox Chase Medical Center. This involved 2 months of chemotherapy, resulting in her hair thinning. Abbie and her dad had the new task of hiding the hair loss from her by snatching up the fallen hair before Lynda would find it!
Abbie is convinced that "Sophie", Lynda's dog, knew what was happening all along. They even got her into the hospital to visit!
Toward the end, it seemed as if Lynda held out to say goodbye. Her brother Bob flew in from Hawaii in the nick of time, "Oh Bob it hurts, I waited for you".
Her fight was strong and her life cut much too short. Abbie and husband Mike were grateful to have the time to process this in steps, the "not hit by a bus factor", a term we may have coined during our meeting.
Please join us to see more of Abbie's and other stories November 22nd 2-6pm, at the Film Tech School, 2019 S. Juniper St. 2nd Floor Philadelphia, PA 19148.