Katelestrange on the PFW forum always refers to PotterFicWeekly as family, and we certainly are. Those of us who turned on the lights here have only been together for six months, but there is no denying that we’ve forged lasting and permanent friendships. When you start a project like PotterFicWeekly you expect to learn about editing and audio programs and scheduling. You never expect to learn about yourself. This place has a way of sneaking up on you, and like it or not, family is what this place has become.
There can be no debate that Jen is the heart of our family.
If you just judge Jen by the podcast, she’s the wacky smut-addict who doesn’t quite understand the intricacies of parking brakes or tax fraud. It is true that she almost crushed her husband with the family car that one time, and she really did call 911 when she ran over a squirrel. Jen faced down a murderous grizzly bear to save her $8,000 camera lens, and has been a lifelong advocate for fanfic whales everywhere. We leave out mention of tornadoes, scorpions and vicodin only because you probably get the idea. Those of us who know Jen personally get asked all the time, “Is she really like that?” Unequivocally?
Yes.
Everything we just mentioned is true, but it’s not Jen in a nutshell. Jen is a cancer survivor. In fact, she’s a survivor in every sense of the word. She’s endured stress and hardships that would cause many of us to give up and cry, and every single day, she’s been the Jen that you know from PotterFicWeekly. She’s faced challenges that no one her age or any age should ever have to face, and without complaint, she does just that.
She faces them.
While she has earned the right to be, Jen is not bitter about life. She loves life that much harder. She’s fiercely loyal, genuinely warm, and is one of those rare people who without realizing it and without having ever met any of us in person, has inspired us to be better people. Jen’s extremely humble. She once missed a podcast on account of having her appendix removed, and it took us five minutes to get her to stop apologizing for taking the week off. It’s against her nature to ask for help, so we’ll ask on her behalf.
Jen was hospitalized last week for problems related to her intestine and colon. She’s obviously no stranger to hospitals, and she’s obviously a fighter. She’s been discharged, but the six months are going to be critical for Jen and she has a long road ahead of her. She’ll try to be on the forums and is already insisting that she wants to be on next week’s podcast.
We at PotterFicWeekly didn’t get the privilege to know Jen the last time she needed thoughts and prayers, but we won’t let these months go by without reminding Jen every day how much she means to us, how much we need her, and how we have no doubt that she will do to her illness what she did to that grizzly bear – beat it with that special ingenuity that only Jen has. Please use this space to send Jen your continued positive thoughts and best wishes, and feel free to email her directly at jen@potterficweekly.com.
We love you Jen!
Ryan & LadyChi
Do the best you can for as long as you can. Remember that all may yet be well. Don't be afraid.
Posted on August 28th, 2007 by Ryan
Filed under: News
