Georgia Magazine - November 2024 - 42

Hometown HEROES
By Amber Lanier Nagle
Brandi Benson
helps those who
have lost hope
I
n 2009, in Dewaniya, Iraq, Brandi Benson,
a 24-year-old U.S. Army soldier who had
been experiencing extreme fatigue, felt a
lump in her left thigh as she stretched.
" It was the size of an orange, " Benson
says. " A week later, it was still there. "
She was sent to Baghdad, then to
Germany, then to Walter Reed National
Military Medical Center in Maryland, where
she was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma, a
rare form of bone cancer.
" [With treatment,] the doctors gave
me eight to 12 months to live with only a
15 percent chance of surviving beyond fi ve
years, " she says. " Th ey told me to update my
will and get ready to die. "
She started chemotherapy in February 2009
and began to grieve. Soon after, Benson's mother,
Tippi Benson, arrived at Walter Reed to be at her
daughter's side during treatment.
" She quit her job so she could be with me, "
Benson says. " And she brought my 2-year-old
nephew with her, because my sister was also
deployed. The two of them slept on a couch in my
room. "
Benson's mother witnessed the doctors
speaking to her daughter as if she was a hopeless
case-a ghost of sorts. Moreover, her mother
realized that they had convinced Benson that death
was both inevitable and imminent.
" Mom put a piece of paper on the door that said,
'No negative banter in this room,' " Benson recalls.
" She sat on my bed and said: 'You can do this, but
you have to believe you can recover from this. Focus
on a future for yourself.' "
Th e two women changed the narrative that day
and began practicing positive self-talk, speaking
words that were encouraging and uplifting. Benson
set goals, kept a journal and devised a plan to write
a book about her journey after her treatment
concluded.
After six rounds of chemotherapy, a surgery to
remove the abductor muscle in her leg and then eight
42 Georgia Magazine November 2024
additional rounds of chemo, Benson walked out of the hospital to begin a
new chapter of life in November 2009. She enrolled in college and earned a
bachelor's degree in mass communication and journalism from Ashford
University in Chandler, Ariz., followed by a master's in writing from the
Savannah College of Art and Design. Her testimonial book, " Th e Enemy
Inside Me, " was her published thesis.
Today, the 40-year-old cancer survivor advocates for cancer patients,
especially those facing dire prognoses. At speaking engagements, Benson
shares the importance of having support systems around during times of
turmoil and encourages audiences to pursue diff erent avenues of physical
and mental therapy to promote healing and wellness. She won the Sarcoma
Foundation of America's Courage Award in 2020.
From her McDonough home, she runs Resume-Advantage, an
employment services business she founded that helps veterans
transitioning from the military and other professionals present their skills,
education, qualifi cations and experience to potential employers.
Hers is a story of indomitable will and determination-a young woman
who dared to believe she would live and came out on the other side to help
those who have lost hope.
" I tell people what my mother told me when I was at my lowest point, "
Benson says. " She said: 'Miracles happen every single day. Why can't you
be one of them?' "
Amber Lanier Nagle is a freelance writer based in Adairsville.
Visit Brandi Benson's website at brandilbenson.com to learn how she is
advocating for cancer patients and changing the narrative so more patients
can live and thrive.
TMJ PHOOTGRAPHY
http://www.brandilbenson.com
Georgia Magazine - November 2024

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