In honor of Christi McCall
As a child, Christi McCall, a former Navy Corpsman, watched her dad go to war and return safe but 20 years later her husband was fighting a similar war. Christi knew that both men were blessed to return even thought they suffered from mild symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Determined to help our marines and sailors who are unable to cope with their more severe cases of PSTD, Christi enrolled at Campbell University’s extended campus at Camp Lejeune. She was in her final semester as a psychology major when she was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of breast cancer.
She needed surgery, eight courses of chemotherapy, and then radiation. School had to wait. The good news, doctors told her, was that she could seek treatment anywhere. She chose UNC.
“And I’m so glad I did,” she says. “In the whole six months I was there, I had not one bad experience, not one person having a bad day. Everyone was so nice. I know they see thousands of patients, but when I asked questions and had my procedure, it was like no one else in the world existed. They are just so good at their jobs.”
Christi, a mother of three, returned to school and hopes to graduate in May.
“I’m determined to get that degree,” she says. “I really want to show my kids that no matter what, you need to get a degree and you need to finish what you start no matter the obstacles.”