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STRONG SMILEY STEPHANIE Insists Positivity Will Prevail! Understandably shocked by a cancer diagnosis at the age of 24, Stephanie Hargis had no warning, no genetic predisposition (or so she thought) and no idea how she would juggle treatment while being a full-time college student, wife and mother of a toddler. With so many questions and so much uncertainty and fear, she took control of what she could - her own thoughts. And she asserts, “good mental space” is the starting point for success. Raised by a single mother after the passing of her father when she was just two-years-old, Stephanie had no idea the life lessons her mother instilled in her at a young age would become the prevailing mindset, not only to make her who she is today, but also to get her through her most difficult challenge. Her mother, a Mexican immigrant, didn’t know how to drive or speak English at the time of her father’s death.
By Erin Schreyer
Photography by Erin Schreyer
Hair and Makeup by Jeanna Doyle, The Hopemore
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“He took care of those things for her,” Stephanie explained. “So when he passed, she could have easily just taken me back to where she was comfortable, but she didn’t. Instead, she learned to drive. She learned to speak English. I’ve seen everything she’s gone through, so I used that. If she can do everything she puts her mind to, why can’t I? I can do that too!”
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