The Johnk Family farm is truly a family business, with no hired help, Becky Johnk and her husband manages their land of over 100 cattle, hogs and goats. Becky Johnk spends most of her time tending to the animals, but lately she's been preoccupied with another matter, her cancer diagnosis.

“I finally might have a reason for the pain I’ve been having. I’ve had trouble walking for the past three years,” she said.

Johnk has been suffering from severe tailbone pain since giving birth to her daughter. Just rocking her newborn was difficult.

“I do feel a lot of times new mothers are pushed off with their pain because of depression or anxiety and its alot to take on,” said Becky Johnk

When a MRI showed a growth on her tailbone, her doctor prescribed her to lose weight, however the pain persisted. After several misdiagnoses, Johnk and her husband, Alex, decided it was time to find a new doctor and that’s when she was told she has chordoma, a rare cancer that affects only one in a million people in the country every year.

“It’s kind of nerve wracking to not only be laid up and not be able to check on everything, but not be able to look out the window and see them either,” Johnk said.

She is looking to start treatment in Boston where she will undergo a month of radiation before surgery to remove the tumor. Her husband and daughter will stay home to manage the farm,  which hasn’t been easy as they continue to face ongoing hardships with inflation.

“Moving hay or fixing equipment, feeding the hog at 11:00 at night than getting up and doing it all again at night,” Johnk said.

“Luckily she’s got a family friend that’s gonna help out with the farm stand a lot and some of the other things around here but at the same time there’s definitely going to be a lot more to pick up on my end. But I’m ok with that,” Alex Johnk said.

But thankfully, family and friends have stepped in to offer help. A customer set up a go fund me page and a family friend offered to oversee their farm stand. With a long road ahead of her, she says her love for her farm remains constant.

“The farm keeps me going, I have to say. That is my passion. Just yesterday I walked five miles on the pasture, with a cane, but I was happy to do it,” Johnk said.