Shari Lincoln

Shari Lincoln, Head of the Lower School at Fort Worth Country Day, will never forget the kindness and concern her students unknowingly showed her the day she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Shari first received a mammogram in the summer of 2004, where doctors determined there was something they wished to track over the next six months. Returning to the doctor in December, Shari’s radiologist explained that the spot had changed and recommended getting a biopsy. Due to the holidays, Shari was forced to wait for the results with uncertainty until January. Upon receiving her diagnosis minutes before class began, two students approached Shari because they became worried when she did not arrive on time. Walking into the classroom seeing all of her students with their homework out and ready to learn brought tears to Shari’s eyes.

Following her diagnosis at age 44, Shari found a mentor in a FWCD parent who had battled the disease. She was able to point her in the right direction leading up to and following her bilateral mastectomy. When a lumpectomy in January failed to clean all margins, Shari was forced to go back into surgery to take out more of the tumor until the pathology report was clear. While the doctor was clearing out more tissue in Shari’s second surgery, he found a whole other pocket of cancer that had not registered on the mammogram. At this point, Shari opted for a bilateral mastectomy to rid her body entirely of the aggressive cancer. Only missing one day of work during chemotherapy, Shari made losing her hair a positive experience by wearing different colored wigs each day based on her outfits. After a bake sale during school, Shari happened to get some icing from her cupcake on her wig and commented about it to her class. She broke down in laughter when one of her students exclaimed, "that’s a wig?!," despite Shari’s tendency to wear different length and colored wigs on a daily basis.

A longtime supporter of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Shari registered for the upcoming race as a part of her 6th grade class’ community service project. Just a few weeks after one of her five surgeries, Shari participated in the Race for the Cureâ as a member of the largest team in the school’s category. Instead of signing up for the entire race, Shari decided to participate in the shorter fun run. After accidentally getting into the wrong crowd of people, Shari ended up walking the entire 5K race. As she approached the finish line, she was greeted by her students and their families cheering her on. Shari was presented with the trophy for first place for largest school team by the 6th grade class, which she proudly displays in her office to this day.

Despite having to undergo further surgeries to insert a chemo port for chemotherapy, her support system of family, friends and students served as cheerleaders throughout the entire process. The Susan G. Komen Tarrant County affiliate provided her with valuable connections to other women battling breast cancer that Shari could talk and relate with. Shari found relief through talking about her illness with others and seeking advice from someone who had already experienced what she was going through. She advises women to allow other people to help out with daily tasks, to laugh often, and to take advantage of the countless resources that Susan G. Komen offers.

From her experience, Shari tries to always be kind to others because "you never know what news a person may have just been given or how much a smile or hug may change a person’s day for the better." With her sense of humor, strong connections and support from Tarrant County Komen, along with her kind family, friends and students, Shari will proudly wear her pink survivor hat at the upcoming Race for the Cure.