Betty Chavez:  

Life A year after graduation I married Gilbert Chavez.We were divorced in 1980. We have 2 wonderful children, Tony age 37, Teri age 40, and 8 grandchildren, 4 girls and 4 boys. My daughter and her 3 kidslive in Prescott Valley, AZ. My son and his 5 kids live in So. Calif. I am currently living in Victorville, CA I worked for Sears for 7 years, and for San Bernardino County for 7 years as a Collections Officer II. I then got a promotion as Collections Supervisor and later Department Manager in Ventura County and the kids and I moved there for 10 years.I got my A.S. degree in Business/Marketing in 1984 and continued college for another 5 years at night. I got burned out just short of my B. S. degree, because I had to take so many computer courses for my jobs, and the credits didn't transfer. I did not stay with the County but couple years, politics impossible to live with. I worked as Collection Manager for a hospital and a group of physicians.In 1989 I went into Real Estate. Little did I know it was starting to crash. I eventually had to file bankruptcy.I then began a career as a Life Insurance Agent with Woodmen of the World and now retired. Tony graduated from Respiratory Therapist school in 1996. He is now pursuing a new career and competing his B. S. degree in Sociology. He is single now, but is the greatest DAD in the world to ALL his children, ages 5, 7, 11, 15, 18. May 2000 I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. I spent the better part of 2000 and 2001 in bed, and barely working. Needless to say it shredded my finances again. I have learned to manage it pretty well.. Second part of my story from 2006 to current. I was DX with breast cancer 1/06. I found a lump the size of a golf ball just came out of nowhere. Only been 12 months since my last mamogram. A new mammo confirmed it. 3 weeks later saw the breast surgeon for a biopsy and confirmed cancer, but now 5 cc instead of 2 cc. Radiologist wanted to double check the other side, after running more test felt r breast ok. Then surgery, 7 weeks from when I found it, and it was now 7cc x 4cc x 2 cc. Really agressive. The cancer had gone into my lymphnodes. But the margins weren't clean, so a month later had another surgery and removed another lymphnode from l for biopsy to be sure. Left side was ok. Went through extreme chemo for months, of course lost my hair. Then needed two units of blood. Then 37 sessions of radiation. With my Fibromyalgia it really left me totally fatigued and in more pain, partly due to the hormone therapy. Last day worked fulltime 3/23/06. State didsability ran out 3/07, and been fighting for Soc Sec Disab early retirement ever since. 4/07 had carpel tunnel surgery and 6 weeks of therapy. It helped somewhat, eventually need to get left hand done. I tried to get back to work, slowly. 3 days 4 hours a day (same job) and it really did me me. June 07 lease was up, I had no income and my boyfriend, Chris had just lost his job. He'd been paying my was for awhile. So in August my son and his wife insisted I move to Fresno and stay with them to hopefully get back on...Expand for more