Community
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MARCH 24, 2011
Where’s Woo? Cancer survivor mourns death of her feline pal By Sebastian Moraga For years after Sally BusbyHill’s son Luke brought him home in 1998, Woo the cat would hide inside closets. When Busby-Hill and Woo first moved to a house in Sandpoint, Idaho, the cat rushed to the nearest wardrobe. “I don’t know how appropriate this is,” said Busby-Hill, back in Snoqualmie since 2007, “but my son would make jokes about the cat being in the closet. He would say, ‘Woo, we have to talk about this.’” Woo never did speak about his “issues,” the same way he never put mice out of their misery. He brought them and then watched Eddy, the female cat, try to catch them. Sometimes, the rodent would hide under Woo’s tail. Woo never stopped asking to be let in and out of the house, sometimes for 15 minutes at a time. He never stopped napping on Busby-Hill’s dog Martha and
“But I believe that if there’s something left in me to give, I’m going to give it. If I can show what perseverance is like, then I’m doing my job.” — Sally Busby-Hill Snoqualmie resident he never stopped making his owner feel loved, not even that day in late January. “He was so strong,” she said. “The car hit him and he still walked back to the house.” Woo collapsed at her feet. At the vet’s office, when Woo’s mouth began to bleed, she decided her friend deserved better. “I wanted him to die with dignity,” a tearful Busby-Hill said. She knows about dying with dignity. Diagnosed with cervical cancer, she was given a 2 percent chance of survival in 1996. Radiation defeated the cancer that time and again in 1998, but
it thrashed her insides. Since 1998, Busby-Hill lives on what she calls end-of-life care. The cancer may never return, but her organs will never get better. “Like the doctors told my family,” said Busby-Hill, the patient of 17 gastroenterologists, “‘She may look well on the outside, but the inside is where the problem is.’” At 55, Sally does look well. Blonde, slender, with a smile that could distract a Tibetan monk, she exudes joy when talking about her plants. But then, she talks about the new normal and the Tibetan monk returns to his prayers. The new normal is what she calls her life now that radiation scar tissue wrapped around nerve endings shoots pain from her toes to her hips. No hikes, no bikes. No jobs, no strolls. Her stride has a limp and her heart has a cat-shaped hole in it. See FELINE, Page 11
By Sebastian Moraga
Sally Busby-Hill holds a photo of one of her best friends, the great Woo. A cancer survivor still dealing with the effects of radiation treatment, Busby-Hill is now mourning the passing of her furry pal.
Entrepreneur takes dip in ABC’s ‘Shark Tank’ By Sebastian Moraga
By Sebastian Moraga
James Mitchell and his life’s passion: a food-grade deodorizer called Pure Ayre that will be featured in the April 1 edition of ABC’s ‘Shark Tank.’
James Mitchell sprays his tongue with deodorizer. Twice. Then, he takes a bigger bottle and he sprays three times. On his eyes. If you think he should be committed, don’t worry. He already is. To those bottles, that is. “I have a passion for truth, integrity and honesty,” said Mitchell, whose deodorizer Pure Ayre will appear in the April 1 episode of ABC’s reality show “Shark Tank.” The industry that regulates deodorizers does not, he said, and as a result most “natural” odor removers carry chemicals. Pure Ayre does not, and he said that’s why it has so much potential. It’s entirely food grade and works on the foulest domestic odors. To prove it, he grabs a bottle labeled “NH3,” and sprays a tissue with it. The tissue reeks of ammonia. Out comes the Pure Ayre and the tissue now smells of peppermint. Five seconds later, the tissue smells of nothing. Hundreds of demos like these over the past 10 years led Mitchell’s friends to convince him to contact ABC about being on “Shark Tank,” a reality show that lets entrepreneurs pitch ideas to five business moguls. In August 2009, they finally conSee SHARK, Page 11
Emergency preparedness To help people be better prepared if they find themselves in an emergency situation in a remote area, the Si View Metropolitan Parks District offered a wilderness first aid class during the last weekend of February at the Cedar River Watershed Education Center. Fourteen people attended. Instructor Kalli Wilson taught the students to handle a wide array of situations, including hypothermia, broken bones, spinal injuries, heart attacks and altitude sickness.
Photos contributed