OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — James Hickey is coming to the end of his long journey, he’s at the end of a 500 mile walk for an eight year old girl from Cozad, Nebraska who’s battling brain and spinal cancer.
The girl’s name, Patience. Hickey has walked nearly the entire length of Nebraska starting in Scottsbluff in 2021.
It was on this walk to raise awareness of Patience's cancer battle, where Hickey discovered his own.
“I just started getting weaker and weaker on the road,” He said. “I stopped at two clinics, one in North Platte, one in Kearney
Hickey’s diagnosis was bladder cancer.
When he got to Aurora, his body was too weak to go on. Hickey had to suspend the walk, but he promised Patience that one day he’d finish it.
It would take 5 surgeries and the removal of his left kidney for him to be able to resume the walk, then on February 26th…
“I decided that hey it’s time,” He said. “Two years, three months and five cancer surgeries later I’m fulfilling my promise to that little girl and finishing her walk.”
Saturday morning he made good on his promise, finishing the last mile with Patience and her family. The final destination, Children’s Nebraska hospital where Patience is getting treatment.
“I’m very grateful for him and what he’s doing for pediatric cancer and raising awareness and telling our story,” Tara Meyer, Patience’s mother said. “It was a long journey having a child with cancer.”
It took determination and yes, patience for Hickey to hit his goal, and now that he has…
“It’s just a feeling of number one that I kept my promise to her, and two a sense of accomplishment that I did what I said I was going to do.
Hickey is also still receiving treatment for his bladder cancer in Colorado and will for the next three years.
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