the torch Summer 2015, Issue 2 | Page 8

The sound of healing At a dedication ceremony in May, an intimate group gathered in the Horner Family Chapel in Baylor Charles A. Sammons Cancer Center to honor Donya Folco’s remarkable journey of courage and endurance in her battle with breast cancer. Donya’s journey, as with many others, has not been traveled alone – she was supported by friends, family, and her dear friend and colleague, Joe Staley and his wife, Linda. Not only did Joe and Donya share their profession and a deep friendship and respect for one another, they also shared a diagnosis of cancer. In 2002, two years after Donya joined Joe’s law firm, Joe was diagnosed with neck cancer. He traveled to Houston to receive his radiation treatments. Following the completion of this therapy, he participated in a tradition marking this important transition; he rang a bell. “When you go into the radiation area, everyone in the waiting room is there doing the same thing – you’re real brothers, fighting the same fight. There’s an understanding and empathy that you could feel every time you walked in there,” remembered Joe. “When I completed my treatment and rang the bell, there was a real feeling of exhilaration and completion, not just for me but for everyone in the room who was fighting the fight right along with me. It really gives you a sense of hope for the future and the feeling that you’re not i