Editor's Note: In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, Sounders FC and the American Cancer Society released a 2016 calendar featuring Sounders players and Seattle-area breast cancer survivors. The calendar is currently available at all Sounders FC Pro Shop locations, and all proceeds will be donated to Making Strides Against Breast Cancer of Seattle, the local affiliate of the American Cancer Society. SoundersFC.com spoke with survivor and Emerald City Supporters member Hollie Coates Seamster about her story, appearing in the calendar and the support she's received from fellow Sounders fans. Here's the first in the series of other survivor stories, the second in the series, the third and the fourth.
For many people, the beautiful game offers a weekly escape. For 90 minutes, the focus is on cheering and watching your team rally against an opponent. The result can pull you out of a bad mood or send you plummeting into frustration.
Despite the love-hate relationship that can be forged with a club, the community cultivated within the stadium is equally as important as the support a fan provides. People bond over more than a mutual love of a team; friendships are built and faces are remembered long after the final whistle.
For Hollie Coates-Seamster, the escape of a Sounders match with her husband has been important over the last year as they face her battle with cancer together.
“I’ve had no history of questionable mammograms. I’ve never been called back before,” she said. “The mammogram I had on April 1, though, they called me back. They diagnosed me with stage one Invasive Ductal Carcinoma.”
Thankfully, the cancer was in its infancy and hadn’t yet moved to her lymph nodes, which meant there were many possibilities when it came to deciding her treatment.
“Because it was stage one,” she said, “I had options.”
In Hollie’s case, early detection allowed her to begin her treatment plan quickly, and she finds solace in knowing that her treatment will be completed before 2016. She finished her chemotherapy on Oct. 5 and is planning to begin radiation in November.
“By Christmastime, I’m done,” she said. “In January, this is behind me and it’s a small blip on my radar. I get to see my granddaughter get married. I’m going to be around that long.”
While she’s had the constant support of her husband, she’s also found comfort in the friendships made through the duo’s relationship with the Emerald City Supporters.
“You might not know someone’s name, but you recognize them,” she said. “For me, having the love and support of ECS has really helped get us through this. I have close friends outside of soccer, but the friends we’ve made through ECS have really stepped up and helped get me and my husband through this difficult time.”
When the phone rang in September inviting Hollie to a photo shoot with Sounders players to benefit the American Cancer Society, she didn’t have to think twice about saying yes.
“The big thing for me is how accessible the players are. That’s why I love this team so much,” she said. “Everyone gets on me about why I don’t have the same love for other teams in Seattle, but I’m loyal to the Sounders. They’re human to me.”
The shoot also offered her a chance to share her story with the team she spent so much of her time watching.
“There were other players that spoke to us and wished us well on our journey,” she said. “They acknowledged, respect and understand just how awful this disease is. For me personally, breast cancer is so huge. Early detection is what I focus on.”
With a few months remaining in her treatment, Hollie is determined to bring light to how critical early detection is and raising awareness that there is life beyond a cancer diagnosis.
“This is what cancer looks like. People have a stereotype in their mind of someone who is sickly, weak and bald, and that’s just not the case,” she said. “When you see me, it really hits home that. ‘If she can get it, I can get it.’ It can happen to my mom, my sister or me. The Sounders acknowledge our journey and the devastating affect it has on families.”
