Linda Rasnake, the family readiness support assistant at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland (Courtesy of Linda Rasnake).
The whirlwind
"She's been wonderful," said Jan Burkhardt, the mother of a current patient at Walter Reed Bethesda, speaking about Rasnake. "She has been so supportive."
"Burkhardt's son, Army Capt. Clayton Burkhardt, was flying a CH-47 Chinook helicopter in June during exercises in Germany when he experienced a seizure. The crew was able to land safely, but a subsequent MRI revealed a brain tumor. In August, the Army captain was medically transported to Walter Reed Bethesda.
Doctors said the treatment would be tricky - the tumor was in an area of the brain that affects speech, making it difficult to remove. But when a biopsy showed the tumor to be a malignant form of cancer, they brought in a Walter Reed Bethesda neuro-oncologist who was also affiliated with the nearby National Institutes of Health (NIH). The tumor was surgically removed at the National Institutes of Health this fall, on Nov. 12.
"It was very scary," Burkhardt said. "He's doing really well," but has headaches and some speech difficulties. Though he is back at Walter Reed Bethesda, the NIH told mother and son that they'd help him with speech therapy for as long as he needs it.
Meanwhile, Rasnake arranged a small event just for caregivers of loved ones with cancer.
It'll be a tough road for Burkhardt. He'll have to start radiation treatment in late December, followed by a lengthy period of chemotherapy. But his mother feels fortunate that she and her husband are retired travel to the Washington area when needed.
Still, the mother said: "It's been really tough."
"It's been a whirlwind. So we've really appreciated Linda and her support, and other folks have been really helpful."
Undaunted
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in 2020, Rasnake said she could only stay away from the hospital for about a month before telling her boss: "I will figure out how to get people together, safely."
"With support from not-for-profit groups, she began organizing "grab-and-go" lunches - meals in to-go boxes delivered to Building 62, known as Tranquility Hall, aboard Naval Support Activity Bethesda, the same base that WRNMMC is located. Masked patients would pick up their meals and head back to their rooms. She also set up tables and handed out hand sanitizer, paper products, masks and gloves for patients and their families.
"At least I had eye-to-eye contact, and that was huge," she recalled. "COVID, for me, took the personal out of what we do, and I really - as did they - missed the personal side of life. Especially where we're at. You see a mom who's struggling because her son has cancer. A year ago, you just wanted to reach out and give her a hug, because that's what she needs. Just that instant bond of hugging her and saying, "I'm here for you. You're not going through this alone.'"
Recognizing that her son's recovery will be a long-term process, Burkhardt said she may find herself helping someone one day, too.
"I hope so," she said. "We're in it for the long haul now."