Keris Nicole Bembry lived each day with fearlessness and a faith that encouraged people around the world.
After her diagnosis with inoperable brain cancer at age 4, Keris didn’t have questions about pain or death. She told her mother that Jesus said everything would be OK.
“It blew my mind when she said that, so calm and reassuring,” said her mother Deidre K. Bembry of Newnan. “It changed my total perspective. I didn’t know what it would be, but I knew we would have a different journey.”
The difference, said family and friends, was Keris’ remarkable resolve.
She experienced few side effects from radiation and chemotherapy. Doctors gave her six months to live, but she lived for 20 months during which her spunk and joyful spirit inspired people who sent her Facebook emails from as far away as Australia.
Keris died July 12 of brain cancer at her Newnan home at the age of 6. More than 1,000 people turned out for her funeral on July 18 at South Metro Ministries in Sharpsburg.
She was born on May 18, 2009, in Columbus, Ga. Her family moved to Newnan when she was 2 months old.
As a preschooler, Keris was a deeply spiritual child who showed a keen understanding of biblical principles, her mother said. She loved arts and crafts and dressing up as a princess.
When she was 4, the usually bubbly Keris began complaining of headaches and had difficulty walking.
On Nov. 21, 2013, she was diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma, a highly aggressive brain tumor in the brain stem. Doctors gave her six weeks of radiation and six months to live.
Instead of preparing for the worst, her parents began seeking other treatment options. They traveled out of state and paid out of pocket for their daughter to participate in trials that were not funded or not offered to pediatric cancer patients in Georgia.
“It was a worthwhile sacrifice because what she got was awesome quality of life,” Bembry said. “She completed the school year and was on no medication. She got to go to birthday parties of friends and celebrate her 6th birthday. We were going everywhere in the name of beating cancer and giving our child a quality of life.”
Through it all, her teachers said Keris maintained her strong faith, joyful spirit and a love for learning.
“She was the definition of childlike faith. She was strong even when she was not feeling well,” said Audrey Floyd, her pre-K teacher at StoneBridge Early Learning Center in Newnan. “She had more faith than a lot of people, including me. She taught me more than I taught her.”
Outgoing and empathetic, Keris always included classmates who felt left out, said Angela Sutherland, her kindergarten teacher at Newnan Crossing Elementary School.
“She always worried about the other kids,” Sutherland said. “Even facing what she was facing, she was not afraid about what would happen to her because she believed she would be OK.”
During their daughter’s cancer fight, the family received an outpouring of support from the Coweta County community.
To give back, the Bembrys started Keris Kares in January to support pediatric brain cancer research and to help other families of children battling brain cancer.
“A very small portion of the money raised for cancer in general funnels into pediatric cancer,” Bembry said. “I’m fortunate that I’m a business owner and I could take off a month when her cancer started growing again. Many parents may not be able to do that. We want to support other parents who want to do everything they can to fight for their children’s lives.”
The nonprofit’s first fundraiser, the 5K Royal Run on May 16, raised $25,000.
“As her parents, even in letting Keris go, we realized that her purpose was larger than staying here,” her mother said. “Our work is continuing her legacy and helping others through her death.”
In addition to her mother, Keris is survived by her father Travers Bembry and sisters Denver and Ashlyn Bembry of Newnan; her maternal grandparents Erwin and Jacqueline Knight of Bonaire, Ga.; and her paternal grandparents Lorenza and Ann Mitchell of Warner Robins.
About the Author
