A blog post for Ishiuan

Ishiuan passed away on March 19. I had just emailed with her last week. I'll always cherish those emails. The last thing she said in her email was how beautiful Adele is, and how the world finds ways to bring people together so they can change each other's lives. That is true. Ish changed every life she touched. May her memory be but a blessing. 

May she be at peace. May her family find comfort and strength. It's hard to find the words today, so I'll let some others do the talking:

Ishiuan Ku Hargrove

December 29, 1973 — March 19, 2016

Taken from her obituary:

After a ten-year struggle with breast cancer, Ishiuan Hargrove passed away at home, surrounded by her loving family. Ishiuan was born in Luodong, Taiwan and arrived in Augusta, Georgia at age sixteen. She attended Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, double-majoring in math and physics. Graduating magna cum laude in 1997, she later earned a master's degree in medical physics in 1999 from the Emory University School of Medicine.

A tireless advocate for advances in treatments for cancer patients, she devoted her time and energy to supporting cancer research, fund raising, and raising public awareness of breast cancer.

In 2007, Ishiuan joined a group of breast cancer survivors biking throughout Taiwan to educate patients about survivability and to remove societal stigmas against cancer. 

More recently, she volunteered for Young Survival Coalition (YSC) as Florida state leader, participating in annual team biking events to raise money for people diagnosed with breast cancer under the age of 35. She also worked with the U.S. Department of Defense, selecting breast cancer research projects for federal funding.

Ishiuan loved and inspired her many friends. She has long been admired by friends and family for her drive, resilience, and continued positive outlook in the face of her illness.
You can see her obituary online here.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to YSC south.ysctourdepink.org/Hargrove 

From Pablo Colon, friend and co-captain of team I RIDE 4 HER, reprinted with his permission:

"My heart is breaking as I write this, my dear friend & co-captain of Team I RIDE 4 HER Ishiuan passed away peacefully yesterday at her "Utopia" aka her home. The impact she had on those around her was legendary. Ishiuan was a force of nature and I can't really put to words how much she will be missed.

Some will say "She lost her battle with breast cancer." I won't. If you knew Ishiuan, you know she didn't lose anything. She won. She won with every extra day/week/month/year she got to spend with Adam and her boys. She won every time she got on that bike that she loved so much and she rode 200 miles in the YSC Tour de Pink East Coast and then went back to Florida and chemo. She won when she went to New York City for brain surgery and instead of taking cab she rode a Citibike to the hospital. She didn't lose a battle. She went to war and she beat the hell out of cancer with the spirit of a warrior who would never quit. She beat cancer by living her life to the fullest every day, inspiring those around her and advocating in Washington and nationally for other young metastatic women. She beat cancer by not letting it dictate what she could or couldn't do or achieve. She beat cancer by living life on her terms. 

I got to spend a few hours with her this past Tuesday and it was a blessing and a gift to be able to share that time with her. We talked about the beginning of our little team of riders and what it had become and how it would grow. She asked me to ride in her place in the upcoming TdP South ride and generally gave me a homework list of things she wanted me to do. If you knew her you know this isn't surprising. She was also still ever the advocate. "This is the reality of breast cancer, Pablo. I'm doing this for Erin and Dalia" she said, after we posted a picture to facebook. When I told her she'd she'd always be with us. She smiled and said "I'll be riding in the clouds on top of you guys."

In lieu of flowers, you can donate to the Young Survival Coalition using Ishiuan's YSC Tour de Pink South page.  south.ysctourdepink.org/hargrove"

Rest easy, my dear, dear friend. Thank you for touching my life and sweetening my soul. I can take comfort in knowing you'll always be with us, in the clouds on your bike, and in our hearts.