*Nelda (right, holding baby Garren Russell) and her niece, Chalissa Russell; mother, Owetta Walton-Bost; and daughter, Taylor Timmons, celebrating her mother’s retirement in September 2015.*

Since Sweden has always been on Nelda’s bucket list, she and Taylor took a mother-daughter trip there during August 2019. Here, they are in Stockholm with Julia Stridsberg, a PG exchange student they hosted shortly after Nelda’s remission.

*Nelda, her father, Johnny Walton, and daughter, Taylor, during a 2016 gathering in Ft. Worth to participate in an 80th birthday surprise party for a family member.*

Seeing your child’s college graduation, getting a promotion at work, watching your daughter walk into a room in her gorgeous Homecoming dress … all these are milestones that we sometimes take for granted. We know we want to be present for them, but we do not often realize how quickly they could disappear, or worse yet, never materialize at all.

For Nelda Timmons, these moments could have easily been missed had her journey with leukemia ended differently. Her brave battle against the disease started in the fall of 2008, the night of Pleasant Grove’s Homecoming game. She was diagnosed a few short days later with a rare aggressive form of the disease called Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (APL).

“Some people with APL die before they ever know what they have,” Nelda said. “Fortunately for me, I was in the care of fast-acting providers that knew where I needed to be. MD Anderson told me, had I waited until Sunday without the immediate treatment, I would not have survived to see Monday. It was that close of a call.”

On Thursday, Nelda was in Little Rock leading a meeting with her sales team, and by Saturday night of the same week, she was fighting for her life in Houston at MD Anderson. To this day, according to Nelda, the first 72 hours of her journey is still a blur.

“I had been to the doctor earlier in the week regarding some minor symptoms and bruising,” she said. “I knew something was wrong but had no idea what was in store for me. I was thinking I may be anemic or something. While in Little Rock [for work], my doctor called me to tell me he spoke to a specialist in town. He said they did not want to scare me, but this was presenting like leukemia. He thought it best for me to go to the hospital for some tests to rule it out. My response was, ‘I can’t go to the hospital now, I am out of town and in the middle of a meeting.’ I wanted to wait until Monday because we had big plans for the weekend – it was my daughter’s senior year Homecoming weekend. We had a football game, Homecoming dance, pictures, and more. I simply did not have time for this. Nonetheless, Dr. Blane Graves talked me into going to the hospital first thing Friday morning. I was still thinking it would be a quick in and out kind of day, but that’s not quite how it worked out.”

In a single day, Nelda’s blood work was showing aggressive changes each hour. Some friends and church members happened to be in the hospital and circled around her to pray. “It was then I realized my life as I knew it was about to change,” she said.

By Saturday evening, local oncologist, Dr. Gary Engstrom confirmed the diagnosis and explained to Nelda the seriousness of what was happening. For him to confirm what type of leukemia she had, he would need to send out for lab work which would take a couple of days to return. As rapidly as her platelet counts were falling, he said she needed to get to a facility that had a lab onsite so the provider could have the results within hours, not days.

*Taylor graduated from Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in May 2015. Nelda admits that this is one of the proudest moments she has had as a mother.*

Options were discussed and Nelda chose to seek treatment at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. “My daughter was at dinner before her Homecoming dance when her dad called to tell her she needed to come to the hospital immediately,” Nelda said. “She came into my hospital room still wearing her Homecoming dress. I remember thinking how beautiful she looked, and then we dropped a bomb on her that changed her world as she knew it. My mom was there to console her, and we then spoke with my niece who is like a daughter to me. We cried together, then I was on my way to MD Anderson. We left, leaving Taylor and her dad to figure out the details of how we were going to manage all this.”

By the time Nelda, her mom, and a family friend loaded up in the car, she was starting to experience the results of the low platelet count, and severe pain set in, as head bleeds were starting to occur. “I cannot describe the headache,” she said. “Bruises would just appear out of nowhere. My mom sat in the back of my reclined seat and literally held my head in her hands to comfort me for the hours it took to get to Houston. Upon arrival, the leukemia team met me outside and immediately started giving me high doses of medications before I even crossed the threshold.”

*Nelda’s awesome friends held a surprise 50th birthday. She felt blessed and thankful that she was able to reach this milestone.*

Nelda began her journey that weekend, but the battle against leukemia would rage on for more than 10 months of treatments, while she endured six days in the ICU, a month-long hospital stay, and daily appointments for treatments. The treatment for APL is a cycle of daily infusions of a medication derived from Arsenic, along with a potent oral drug called ATRA.

The Timmons’ family Halloween Party has been a lifelong tradition. Nelda’s daughter, Taylor, has now been named as the hostess.

“Yes, the treatments are from Arsenic, the same ingredients used in rat poison,” Nelda said. “The treatments in the months to follow were grueling, but effective. Although, I felt terrible, the platelet count and other numbers were on the rise. The chemo nurses and doctors that cared for me in Texarkana were positive and motivating. I was known as the “arsenic patient.” Being there every day, I really got to know the staff and learned the schedule of other patients. One patient in particular helped me deal with survivor’s guilt, which was a real struggle for me. As our treatments went on, I continued to improve as he declined. He said although he knew he was losing his battle, me getting better made him happy in knowing that there are people that win the battle. He advised me to keep moving forward and live on for people like him and send a message that cancer can be beaten. He was such an encourager and cheered me on as long as he had the strength to do so. Ironically, I received my last treatment on the day of his funeral – I knew he would find that satisfying and it made his spirit smile. His advice to keep moving forward was some of the best I have ever received, and I still practice that philosophy when faced with other challenges in my life.”

Nelda said that after completing treatments it took her years to feel normal again, and that she still feels side effects from time-to-time. She said life since leukemia has had its ups and downs, but mostly has been good. “I learned many things through my battle with leukemia,” Nelda said. “First and foremost is the power of faith in God. I had a warm peace from the beginning, during the first prayer circle, and knew I was going to be okay. I did not know whether I would live or die, but either way, I knew I would be okay because of my faith.

Taylor and Nelda making silly faces in 2011 ... this photo is Taylor’s all-time favorite picture of them because she was finally getting her mom back after that Homecoming night when their lives were forever changed.

“I also learned the people of Texarkana really know how to rally with support and encouragement during dark times,” she said. “I was so humbled by the generosity and love offered to me and my family. We had needs met before I even knew we had them. Special friends and church members planned for housing in Houston, transportation, flights for Taylor. My Bunko girls put together a big bright box full of miscellaneous items that I called my ‘happy box.’ When my feet were cold, there were socks in the happy box. If my lips were dry, there was ChapStick in the happy box. They thought of everything. They set up a CareBridge page to help with communications and updates. Cards arrived by the dozens at the hospital. People wore orange bracelets, ran awareness marathons and had blood drives in my honor. I received handmade angel quilts, which were a godsend during the infusions. Teachers showed up at the house to check on Taylor. Our lawn was automatically cared for, and the list goes on and on. There is no way I can ever repay such acts of kindness. I am forever grateful for my caring network of friends and family. All I know to do is try to pay it forward.”

Not every battle with such a nasty disease ends as well as Nelda’s did, but one thing is for sure – she has not taken for granted the gift of healing and life she has been given. She is making sure that each day forward counts for something in life after leukemia.

Feature Stories

The Gift Of Healing