Jesse and Laura Buzas have been together 25 years. They can’t help but smile when looking at their old wedding photos.

"We just created our lives together and created our own family, and she's the rock,” said Jesse. “She's definitely the rock."

Together, they raised daughters Megan and Caitlyn. Both girls have previously participated in the Freihofer’s Run for Women, and this June, Laura will take part, too.

"I always dreamt of doing it, so now’s the time,” said Laura. “There's no time like the present."

Making the most of the here and now is a new philosophy for Laura.

In December 2020, she was a principal at Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Middle School, feeling the same fatigue many school officials did while navigating the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I just think I was exhausted and I didn’t really attribute it to anything more,” said Laura.

But during winter break, Laura was at home making pancakes with her family and suffered a seizure. Doctors discovered it was caused by one of four tumors in her brain. She was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer and given 14 months to live.

“I thought about the loss of my husband; the fact that I likely wouldn’t be there for my daughters’ weddings, stuff like that; that I would never have a grandchild; and my life sort of flashed before my eyes,” said Laura.

She remembers making the conscious decision to fight and do so with a positive attitude.

“I think it’ll be my legacy, if and when I should pass on, that they’ll remember me as someone who was strong rather than someone who belabored my illness or got stuck on my illness or focused on all of the negative,” said Laura.

She’s been through every treatment available to her. Brain surgery impacted her balance, causing her to initially use a walker, then a cane.

“My trainer always says ‘this one’s got a lot of get up and go in her,’ ” said Laura.

But now, she is putting on her running shoes and training for the June 4 Freihofer’s race 15 months after her diagnosis.

Even when Laura feels weak, she says it’s her supportive family that motivates her to keep moving forward. She never has to walk alone. When her daughters aren’t by her side, her mother Cathy is.

"She's risen to every challenge and surpassed my expectations,” said Laura.

The lessons she's learned from her mother, she hopes to impress on her daughters.

"You have to be able to keep your head up and look ahead,” said Laura. "I would say never give up, because I surpassed my expectations as well, and I think that me having expectations of myself was critical to this journey."