By Nancy Slaton
Mom to Emma
Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)
January 2008 – May 2023
Emma’s diagnosis came as a shock. She had become very pale and could barely walk. We took her to multiple hospitals, and eventually she was rushed to Cardinal Glennon. Her hemoglobin level was only a two. On February 23, 2022, we were told she had AML—Acute Myeloid Leukemia.
She rang the bell to mark the end of treatment in June 2022. But by August or September, we were back in the hospital again. She had relapsed.
We spent 25 days in the hospital and only five days out, just like the time before from February to June. But this time, the treatments weren’t working. She was getting sicker. There were setbacks. In November, at age 14, she couldn’t get out of bed. She was in so much pain. Her lungs were struggling. An infection developed in her jaw. We soon found out that her body was filled with 97% cancer cells.
They told us she didn’t have much time.
I remember thinking—how is this happening? She’s only 14. My oldest daughter was supposed to get married the following year. Emma was supposed to be there.
Through everything, Emma fought like no other. And she did it with a smile on her face. She sang. She played her ukulele. She drew. She crocheted. She was amazing. Her strength brought us closer as a family.
What I hope for the future is that people remember the fight she gave, the smile she always wore, and the bright light that Emma was.
One of the most meaningful moments we had before she passed was made possible by On Angels’ Wings. Emma wasn’t going to make it to her sister’s wedding, but OAW made sure she could still be part of it. We brought her sister’s wedding dress and Emma’s bridesmaid dress to the hospital. Emma helped her sister get ready—put on her veil and zip up her gown. They dressed up together, right there in the hospital room. The photos from that day mean everything. Without them, we wouldn’t have any memories of that moment. Now, my oldest daughter has photos of her and her maid of honor, her sister, standing side by side in their dresses.
After much prayer and the pictures OAW provided, God gave us more time with Emma. She started to walk again. She turned 15 in January 2023 and got a bone marrow transplant. She improved so much that she finally got to leave the hospital. In May 2023, she was showing signs of cancer again and received a stem cell treatment to try and fight it. Unfortunately, she contracted Graft-versus-Host Disease (GvHD) in her liver. It moved to her lungs, then her heart, and she passed away on May 15th.
OAW continues to fill a gap in my life. They’ve given me mementos and meaningful things to do when I need them most. It’s almost like, every time I’m missing Emma more than usual, OAW offers something just at the right moment—and I find myself saying, “Emma would love this,” or “Emma would want me to do this.” I truly don’t know how I would get through this journey without them.
Just the other day, I told another mom, “Do it. Get the pictures.” Because one day you’ll need them. They’ll help carry you through. I believe she reached out, and I hope she did—because what OAW does is so important.
It is such a blessing to have beautifully taken pictures of Emma that I can look at, and remember her by.
