{"id":49,"date":"2016-05-17T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-05-17T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost:8000\/?p=49"},"modified":"2016-06-10T21:24:35","modified_gmt":"2016-06-10T21:24:35","slug":"designing-her-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kcc.php83.nfweb.ca\/annual-report-2016\/designing-her-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Designing Her Future"},"content":{"rendered":"
\u201cI realize that by bringing my art form into people\u2019s lives, I can turn a house into a home. That\u2019s huge. Having a beautiful home is one of life\u2019s big dreams. To be part of someone\u2019s dream through design is amazing.\u201d ~ Kelly Hogarth<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n As a child, Kelly Hogarth spent most of her free time drawing and reading. She remembers being more fragile and sickly than her classmates, so these quieter activities were perfect for her.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI was always getting a cold or the flu,\u201d Kelly says. \u201cIn the winter, I had to spend recess and lunchtime inside, while the other kids were playing outside. That was alright, I could draw or read. I was okay with that. I understood why I had to stay inside.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Kelly knew that a weakened immune system was one of the side effects that came with the 28 rounds of chemotherapy she received as a child for Ewing\u2019s sarcoma. A rare cancer that forms in the bone or soft tissue, Ewing\u2019s sarcoma normally appears in teenage boys. Discovering the cancer in a five-year girl was surprising for everyone.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cMy mom was on a business trip and my dad and I were visiting my grandma,\u201d says Kelly. \u201cI was playing on her kitchen floor, when grandma noticed that my jaw looked swollen. At first they just assumed I had the mumps.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Because the tumour was growing in Kelly\u2019s jawbone, there was a severe risk that the cancer would spread to her brain, which is why her treatment called for 14 rounds of chemotherapy both before and after a 16-hour surgery to remove the cancerous bone. During surgery, the doctor took the fibula from Kelly\u2019s right calf, broke it and re-fashioned it into a jawbone, which is secured by bolts and screws.<\/span><\/p>\n Kelly bears the scars of her battle to this day. She still has no bottom teeth on that side of her mouth and she recently underwent advanced surgery to build up her jawline.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cCancer really shaped who I am today,\u201d says Kelly. \u201cI\u2019ve always been hugely into art\u2014sculpting, drawing, painting\u2014whatever the medium, I loved it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n She means this quite literally and figuratively.<\/span><\/p>\n It was during the many inside-times that young Kelly honed her skills as an artist. In grade 11, she realized that a career in art may not be feasible, so she began exploring other avenues to express herself while also making a living. That\u2019s when Kelly decided to pursue a career in interior design.<\/span><\/p>\n