Hero of Hope

It took a lot of strength for Joan Smith to be on stage Saturday at the fourth annual Ride for Hope, just two weeks after having major surgery to combat esophageal cancer.
Overcome with emotion, Smith fought through tears as she presented the “Hero of Hope” award to Dr. Tim Broeseker, whose efforts helped her survive cancer three times in the last 15 years.
“It’s hard to say much after that,” Broeseker said after receiving the award.
Before the award presentation, Smith — who also overcame breast cancer and leukemia — spoke about her experiences with Broeseker. In spite of unfavorable diagnoses, Broeseker time and again arranged for the appointments and treatments necessary to keep her going.
“He was so comforting, so compassionate and so caring,” Smith said. “(He’s) taken care of me, been there for me, and we’ve been able to find hope in all of this each time we had to deal with cancer.”

– Tallahassee Democrat June 7, 2009