Optimae Stories | Richard
Watch Richard’s story: https://youtu.be/3rCAqIkg4E4
When 64-year-old Richard Hanawalt recounts the last year and a half of his life, the prevailing theme is gratitude.
“If it wasn’t for Kimberly noticing my face and eyeballs and my friends seeing me, I probably wouldn’t even be here,” he says.
Richard poses for a photo at a CIP picnic outing in September 2023 , two months after his cancer diagnosis in July.
The friends Richard credits participate in the Community Integration Program (CIP) at Optimae LifeServices in Jasper County, where he has been a customer since 2013. CIP coordinator, Kimberly Sangster, leads two groups — morning and afternoon — which encourage customers to get involved in their community.
One day during group, Kimberly and other customers noticed a yellow tinge in Richard’s skin and eyes: a tell-tale symptom of jaundice. Optimae staff immediately took Richard to the hospital, where he underwent a CT scan and MRI.
The results revealed cancer.
“So, the next thing I knew, I was in a private ambulance going to Iowa City,” Richard recalls. “I was very surprised that my face was turning yellow. And I was also surprised when they said, ‘You got cancer.’”
In Iowa City, doctors removed Richard’s gallbladder and half of his pancreas, along with a tumor the size of his pinky finger. The surgery took nine hours.
Richard spent two weeks recovering at the hospital, where he befriended many of his doctors and nurses — even the ones who always wanted to draw blood, he jokes. A special favorite on his care team is his oncologist, Dr. Naomi Fei.
“She’s very nice. And I just want to say I’m very grateful for everything.”
Recovery and remission
That was the summer of 2023. Now, a year and a half later, Richard is cancer-free. He’s also glad to have his hair back after six months of chemotherapy treatment.
“I’ve been doing OK ever since. My hair is growing back — and ’bout time!” he says with a laugh, feeling the top of his head and examining his forearms. “I had hair falling out like crazy.”
While he’s not yet back at 100% and continues to visit Iowa City for the occasional appointment, Richard says he’s simply happy to be here, enjoying life.
“I’m still recovering, but I’m still having a lot of fun with my friends going places with the afternoon group.”
Richard (seated, right) and the Jasper County afternoon CIP group, led by Kimberly Sangster (standing, left), visited the Iowa State Capitol in October 2023.
CIP groups at Optimae often embark on day trips, visiting local attractions like the Iowa State Capitol, various state and county parks and the Pappajohn Sculpture Park in Des Moines.
“I like to get out of Newton for a while,” Richard admits.
Although Optimae does offer residential site homes, Richard lives in an apartment by himself and says he enjoys the solitude. Aside from CIP, he also takes advantage of Optimae’s payee services to help him manage his finances.
“If it wasn’t for this place, I’d probably be up the creek without a paddle,” Richard says, adding later: “Optimae have been pretty supportive of me.”
Never give up
At a recent CIP gathering, Richard told his friends he had written down a few thoughts after reflecting on his cancer journey. Reading from a spiral-bound notebook, he shared:
To me, life means a lot to me. I am happy to wake up every morning and to hear the birds in the morning and to see the sun, the stars and the moon. Life also means going to church on Sunday and giving thanks to God for helping me get through a long nine-hour operation. It is very special for me to go to church…
I am grateful for a lot of things. Christina, my cousin Hope Bauer, and the entire staff, especially Kimberly, who noticed my face and eyeballs were turning yellow, and to Mercedes, who took me to the hospital.
Richard attends the Community Integration Program at Optimae LifeServices alongside his cousin, Hope.
I want to give Kimberly and Mercedes a great big thank you. And to Aleah — she’s my worker — who has done a lot for me when I was going through my chemo treatment. And to my family. They helped me a lot…
“Never give up.” To me, that means a lot. It means not to give up the fight. Every day is precious and beautiful. I am very happy to hear music, my family and my silly, crazy friends who keeps me laughing and smiling.
You should give God praise every day. You should never give up the fight. Life is too beautiful. Enjoy life to the max.
