Lorraine Powell ran a Peachtree Road Race the day after she'd undergone chemotherapy for ovarian cancer.
Her doctor told her to go for it if she felt up to it. Chuck Powell, her husband of 29 years, was on edge.
"I was so nervous about it, but she was like, ‘I can do it,' and she did," he said. "She never complained a day through the whole fight that she went through."
In March 2004, the business owner was diagnosed with the disease and spent the past seven years in treatment. Through it all, she continued to be a mom and wife while overseeing her company, Premier Meetings Inc., a site-selection firm for hotels and resorts.
She also educated people about ovarian cancer and advocated for research. She'd talk to recently diagnosed patients and share her story with groups. She was an invaluable board member for the Georgia Ovarian Cancer Alliance, said executive director Doug Barron.
"She was a great advocate for what we were doing," he said. "We wanted to get her involved because of her positive energy and never-give-up attitude."
Last Wednesday, Lorraine Hensch Powell died from complications of ovarian cancer at her home in Marietta. She was 50. A funeral Mass will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at St. Ann's Catholic Church in Marietta. H.M. Patterson & Son, Canton Hill chapel, is in charge of arrangements.
Mrs. Powell worked in the hospitality industry, starting out at the Don Cesar Beach Resort in St. Petersburg while enrolled at the University of South Florida. She and her husband moved to Atlanta in 1982, where she continued to work in the field and serve with professional organizations.
Years later, she founded Premier Meetings Inc., and served as its principal until her demise. She used professional contacts to garner support for events like the annual Atlanta ovarian cancer walk, sponsored by the Georgia Ovarian Cancer Alliance.
Mrs. Powell took part in various Alliance programs, one of which included talking to third-year medical students at Emory University. She'd tell them things they wouldn't learn in textbooks, Mr. Barron said.
"She was a very strong advocate for that and no question was off limits," he said. "She would get up and tell her story anywhere she was, and never once did I see her feel sorry for herself or ask, ‘why me?' People gravitated towards her."
Mrs. Powell was hospitalized when her daughter got married earlier this month. The family had the ceremony streamed into her room.
"She never looked at herself as a victim," her husband said. "Her doctor said he'd never had a patient like Lorraine."
Additional survivors include a daughter, Ali Powell Barden of Woodstock; a son, Chase Powell of Marietta; three brothers, Jim Hensch of New York and Timothy Hensch and Thomas Hensch Jr., both of Mount Pleasant, S.C.; three sisters, Jacqueline Murphy of Rockville Centre, N.Y.; and Anne Hensch and Catherine Hensch, both of Mount Pleasant, S.C.
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