RALEIGH, N.C. — Fran Powell has weathered the ups and downs of cancer for more than a decade. Now, she's riding for a cure after losing her niece to the illness.
What You Need To Know
- Fran Powell is an endometrial cancer survivor
- She was diagnosed in 2010
- Powell participate in the Victory Ride this year in her niece's honor, who died from pancreatic cancer last October
- The race is set to take place on May 21
Powell is a survivor of endometrial cancer. The 66-year-old has dealt with her cancer since 2010, during which time it spread to her lungs.
“I don’t know anyone who hasn’t been impacted by cancer in some way,” Powell said.
For the second year in a row, she is pedaling the conversation around finding a cure forward on her electric bike. The cancer survivor will participate in the Victory Ride on May 21. The Victory Ride is part of Jim Valvano's V Foundation fundraising to find a cure for cancer.
“What I have found is that my journey is not unique at all,” Powell said. “As I invited people to ride, they all have a story.”
Since Spectrum News 1 interviewed her last summer, Powell lost a younger family member to cancer. Two months after Powell rode in last year’s Victory Ride, her niece, Kelly Richards, died from pancreatic cancer. That was last October.
“Last year’s race was very meaningful to me,” Powell said. “This year’s race is tenfold.”
She said Richards battled pancreatic cancer for three years.
“As far as what I am supposed to do with it—to me it was immediate that I needed to ride in her honor. I need to make people aware,” Powell said.
So when the avid biker retired from nursing last fall, she focused her energy on cancer research.
“For me it just means so much more to be not just riding for myself but to be riding in her honor,” Powell said. “Cancer research is so vital and it has helped me so much, but there is still so much more we need to do.”
Powell actually flew down to Florida where her niece lived to help take care of Richards.
The stops and starts of cancer keep leaving tire marks in her life.
Powell first talked about the impact of cancer on her life last July.
“I just live my life. I just wake up and say 'it’s just another day,' and do my thing," Powell said. That mindset is what maintained her grip on the handlebars of life during a sometimes bumpy 12-year fight with cancer.
A diagnosis in 2010 led to surgery, chemotherapy, radiation and more chemotherapy—only to have cancer spread to her lungs, not once but twice. The first time cancer metastasized to her lungs in 2015, the prescribed treatment was another round of chemotherapy and surgery.
The second time, in 2017, she said her oncologist offered her hormone therapy that could keep her alive by taking two pills a day. However, Powell said good news like that from a doctor can leave a person unsure.
“For people going through treatment, sometimes it is hard to know you are going to come out on the other side, and it is going to be OK,” Powell said.
The retired nurse loves biking with others as a way to raise money for cancer treatments. The name of her riding team is Biker Chicks and Friends. Her team has grown from two riders last year, to 10.
“It's been an incredible journey,” Powell said.
The emotional pick me up she gets from riding with others is what she feels regularly with her favorite biker rolling behind her; her daughter Jackie Johnson.
“We've always been close, but when I got my cancer diagnosis that brought us even closer,” Powell said.
Johnson said seeing her mother become a grandmother six years ago gave Powell a new purpose.
“Grandchildren was very much a medicine for her,” Johnson said.
When Powell asked if her daughter would join her, it didn’t take Johnson much thought.
“I was excited to do it with her. It’s second nature, she’s my mom. Being her support is not even something I’d think twice about,” Johnson said.
Memories of her niece are among the many stories she will carry across the finish line.
“You end up having a bond. It’s somehow calming but you can nurture each other. You can support each other, and they know that you know what they're talking about because you’ve been through it,” Powell said.
So far, Powell and her team have raised more than $18,000. Powell said Richards' parents will be at the race event on May 21. Leading up to race day and on the day of the victory ride, Powell is using the #KellyIsMyCoPilot hashtag as a tribute to her niece’s life.
The Victory Ride will begin and end at N.C. State University’s Centennial Campus. There will be a 10-mile, 30-mile, 60-mile, and 100-mile distances. Spin classes will also be offered on-site. All races begin at 7 a.m.
Powell is on the Victory Ride Committee.