A member of the Carbon County community for 23 years, Tracy Bain (formerly Tracy Nelson, solo artist) was any other woman in her late forties, enjoying time with her children and numerous grandchildren. She never imagined that she would be receiving the shock of her life when she went to the doctor’s office one October afternoon in 2009 and was informed that she had stage three Breast Cancer and an unrelated patch of skin cancer.
Tracy has spent a lot of her life performing her solo acts at county fairs and as a live entertainer throughout Utah and Colorado. Always wanting to be sure of her health, Bain conducted many self-examinations and found a few lumps. She underwent numerous biopsies and often benign reports were returned. However, she decided to make the examinations a yearly occurrence and on October 19, 2009, she received a cancer diagnosis at 48-years-old.
After receiving the diagnosis, Bain underwent a radical double mastectomy, followed by four rounds of chemotherapy. Having become engaged the night before her surgery, Bain was married in a beautiful outdoor wedding six months after her treatments. Seeing things going in a more positive route for Bain, one of her good friends, Nancy Carlson, decided she needed more positivity in her life and together they created the Tracy Bain Ride for Life Motorcycle Benefit.
For the last six years, the foundation has raised over $12,000 to donate to the fight against the effects of cancer. In the fourth year of her Ride for Life foundation, Bain lost one of her close friends to cancer and had to go through the ride without her, which was a highly difficult time for her.
“In spirit, she encouraged me to keep the ride going and with a lot of help I have been able to continue to ‘Ride for the Cause’ and help others fight through it too,” Bain said.
Five years into both her foundation and her remission, Bain went in for her yearly checkup with a small cough that she didn’t think very much about and was yet again blindsided with unthinkable news. A week after her checkup she was diagnosed with stage two lung cancer. Again facing major surgery, Bain underwent a removal. One third of her lung was taken out to rid her of the cancer, and doctors were successful in removing it all.
Seven months later, Bain is happy and healthy. Bain looks back on the five-year journey with cancer, and she wants to stress the importance of self-examinations and never giving up. Another point she wants to make is it isn’t only about serving yourself through a tough journey, but also helping others.
“Remember that today matters, we are not promised tomorrow, so make a difference in someone’s life, give love and be loved and you will be blessed,” Bain stated.
For more information on the Tracy Bain Ride for Life, contact Tracy on Facebook at Colorado Steel Cowgirls.