Shellie Owens, a longstanding supporter and volunteer for The LAM Foundation, never let her LAM diagnosis stop her from doing everything she could to support her fellow LAM patients. The LAM sisterhood became her passion and focus. Prior to the launch of the LAM Liaison Patient & Family Network, Shellie partnered with our LAM Clinic at Stanford to begin what is now our longest-running regional patient support group. She continued another 13 years with our liaison program, mentoring and supporting countless women and, in 2017, receiving our distinguished LAM Leader Award. The joy with which Shellie lived permeated not only her volunteer activities with the Foundation, but also every aspect of her 30 years as a pediatric oncology and bone marrow transplant nurse at Stanford’s Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital.

From her initial diagnosis in 1994, Shellie approached life with positivity and resilience. She once wrote of herself, “My personal motto is ‘Where your attention goes, the energy flows.’ I put my attention on living fully each moment and on gratitude.” Shellie seldom spoke of her own health issues. When she passed away at the age of 70 in 2021, Shellie had left a six-figure gift to The LAM Foundation in her will. Shellie’s legacy is a testament to her deep commitment and hope that our research will lead to a cure. Sharlene Dunn, Patient and Clinical Programs Director at the Foundation, said: “The positivity that infused her being is how she walked through the world—in her work, in her relationships, and in her journey with LAM.”

You, too, have the opportunity to impact the future of The LAM Foundation without affecting your current cash flow. By generously including the Foundation in your estate planning, you can help ensure the continued pursuit of our mission: to urgently seek safe and effective treatments, and ultimately a cure, for LAM. Learn more about our planned giving options here.