Help Karen McBrine Through Her Cancer Battle

My name is Tim Conway. I'm the Director of Banquets at Owl's Nest Resort in Thornton, N.H. Our team is fortunate to have an amazing bartender, one who is fiercely independent but greatly needs some assistance with her on-going battle with small-cell lung cancer.

This bartender is Karen McBrine. Karen, who is in her late 60s, quit smoking more than 20 years ago. As anyone over 50 probably recalls, not so long ago, smoke-filled bars were the norm.

Karen's battle has been a long one, with periods of her cancer being in remission, only to have the disease rear its ugly head again and test her both physically and emotionally, and obviously, financially. Each time, though, Karen, a mother of three and grandmother of three, has remained positive and fought to maintain her independence.

She always comes to work with a smile, even after endless treatments. She is currently on a two-month battery of chemo and radiation. She has been dealing with the latest fight but treatment and the downtime that comes with it has caused her to miss more than half her shifts over the summer and fall. Recently, while working an event, I saw Karen escape to the room behind the bar and proceed to throw up for five minutes. As I stated, she strives to be independent and is reluctant to accept any help. While planning to create this fundraiser, I approached Karen to get her consent. She simply gave me that great smile of hers and said no one has ever offered to help with, though her cancer struggles date back farther than she cares to remember.

With Karen's treatment over the next two months, along with the event season slowing down at Owl's Nest, Karen needs some help to get through the winter, and likely, well beyond.

Our staff at Owl's Nest are working on other fundraisers to help Karen. We love her dearly and will do all we can to support her. I know times are tight for a lot of us, so donate if you can. If you can't, that's OK but please keep Karen in your thoughts and prayers.