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Shelby’s Story

Site created on February 21, 2023

This page is to ease the burden on Shelby and her family while she fights a battle no 31-year-old should have to fight—the battle against pancreatic cancer. Along with the drastic changes that are happening in her life, many of the day-to-day routines will become difficult for Shelby and her husband, Nick. This page is a resource to find all the ways to support Shelby through this nightmare.

When Shelby went to the emergency room feeling unwell, she never expected to hear that she had cancer, let alone stage 2 pancreatic cancer. Most people who develop the illness are over 55 years old, while Shelby is young and active. Shelby was born & raised in Lafayette, LA, and we know if anyone can kick cancer, it's a Cajun! She will need our love and support as she tackles this hurdle and returns to the tennis court!

Shelby is a tennis pro at Bocage Racquet Club and has been an athlete her entire life. She was once ranked #1 in Louisiana and #18 in the South. After years of competing in the sport, she has spread her knowledge and love of the game through coaching—from City Club River Ranch in Lafayette to Charlotte Swim & Racquet to Bocage in Baton Rouge. Whether coaching a 6-year-old kid or a middle-aged adult, Shelby will convince you that you will play tennis for the rest of your life. Her passion for tennis is apparent on and off the court. Shelby always steps up to the plate when it will benefit others. If you were ever looking for a fourth person to sub in your match or need a ringer to bring your team to state, she would be the one to jump in and help.

Shelby is strong, brave, and handling this like a champ, but as we all know, she will need our support in the coming days, months, and years to beat this. On top of the physical and mental agony she will endure, the medical costs will be astronomical. As a tennis pro, most of her income comes from teaching lessons, which will now be halted.

This fundraiser will help tackle some costs of endless visits to the doctor, surgery, chemotherapy, etc., and enable her to focus on beating the disease without extra financial stress. If you know Shelby, you know she does not need any more stress! After her surgery, she will have two months of recovery before starting six months of chemo. She has already overcome many hardships, and I believe she will find the strength to beat this.

There have been numerous occasions when Shelby helped me out, even when it was inconvenient for her. If you are her friend, you are likely reflecting on a time when she put your needs before hers. She is so selfless and deserves every bit of support we can get her.

From the bottom of our hearts, we sincerely appreciate any donations. No matter the amount, you will be helping! Even sharing this link will be appreciated.

Thank you so much for your support.

Visit the "Ways To Help" page to get the links to donation sites and more.

Go Fund Me
https://www.gofundme.com/f/rallyforshelby

Venmo
@shelbygraciana

Meal Train
https://www.mealtrain.com/trains/o906n1

Newest Update

Journal entry by Renee Dugas — Oct 17, 2023

On February 17th, Shelby's life was forever changed by her Pancreatic Cancer diagnosis at 31 years of age. And on Thursday, October 12th she RANG THE BELL at the OLOL Cancer Institute to celebrate the end of her LAST CHEMOTHERAPY Treatment!

For nearly 8 months, she would go to OLOL every 2 weeks as long as her body could handle it to receive 4 intravenous chemotherapy drugs via infusion at OLOL and she would leave with an additional chemo drug that she would wear in her Festival International fanny pack for 48 hours at home after. This was a grueling, long battle for Shelby and some weeks had to be skipped so her body could rest & heal before she could continue on with her treatment. And now 238 days later, she is FINISHED with Treatment.

This is a bittersweet crossroad as we are not at the point where we can officially say she is in Full Remission and her body is completely exhausted from the chemotherapy treatments, surgery & side effects. But each day forward, she is healing and getting stronger!

We hope to have her back at Bocage really soon but until then, please keep Shelby & her family in your hearts as she recovers from this excruciating battle.

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