A snowfall in northern Ohio inspired a cancer patient’s daughter to write a message to her mom in the fresh snow outside her hospital room.
Michele Schambach, 65, arrived at the Cleveland Clinic from Guatemala hoping for more advanced treatment for her aggressive brain cancer. This was her second time in the United States for treatment, after coming to the hospital for care in October.
Her daughter, Marie Schambach, a physician in Guatemala, told CNN she had never seen snow before, but decided that she could use it to lift her mom’s spirits.
She said — “I looked out the window and saw a big blank slate, and thought I could write something on it.”
Schambach walked by the space on her way back to her hotel one night and tried to dig out the words, but because it was still snowing, it wasn’t working out.
The next day she tried again. This time, her message — “MOM BE BRAVE” — clearly stood out in the white powder. Her mom could see it from her room window.
Marie said — “I told my dad, “Wake my mom! Tell her to go to the window. She was happy, so, so happy.”
Schambach was hoping other patients would see the message and feel like “somebody else cares.”
The Cleveland Clinic tweeted a photograph of the message with the caption, “A beautiful message was left at our main campus today. To the person who wrote it, you’ve touched our hearts.”
As for her mom’s progress Schambach said – “The medicine helpDaughs, but it’s from a lot of support and a lot of prayer.”