LIV: A Memoir

Olivia Stoy was a twelve-year-old sixth grader with the world in front of her. She was a basketball and softball player. Top ten percent academically in her class. Excited—and cool, she thought—because she had a school locker for the first time. Confident in the love of her parents and siblings, and in the promises of her faith.

That faith would be tested—for her and her family—when Olivia was diagnosed with cancer before the school year was out. She beat it the first time around only to have it return. While fighting it a second time, she was hit with sepsis and nearly died. The odds of survival were also against her when she underwent a stem cell transplant after recovering from sepsis.

Through it all, Olivia, parents Tom and Megan, sister Evelyn and brother Preston did more than endure. They became closer, their belief in God strengthened, and they lived the many parts of their Midwestern lives with marginal interruption. The children excelled in school and continued their sporting activities. The parents admirably held down their jobs. And, if there wasn’t already enough going on, the family established a nationwide platform for helping other families with children facing life-threatening illnesses.

LIV isn’t just a story about survival. It is about the power of God, the emotional strength of a benevolent family, and the support of compassionate healthcare workers and a generous community at large. All things Olivia credits for the life she has today.

About the Author

Olivia Stoy was a normal 12-year-old girl when she received a life-changing diagnosis … cancer. Diagnosed with T Lymphoblastic Lymphoma, Olivia began her courageous battle and encountered many obstacles along the way but was supported constantly by her family, friends and community. She met many families and children in medical battles of their own along the way, which is part of what led Olivia to continue to raise money for cancer research at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, Indiana throughout her journey. Olivia has always found comfort in the fact that God always makes good out of bad situations. For her, Liv It Up is the good in a life-changing cancer diagnosis. Olivia can now say she is a cancer survivor, but the influence of both the positive and negative that came with cancer will forever impact her life and the way she lives it.

About the Co-Author

Rick Farrant is a former award-winning journalist, working for such publications as the Denver Post, Time, the San Bernardino Sun, the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette and the Danville Commercial-News. He has also worked or volunteered for nonprofits that improve the lives of others, including Make-A-Wish, Easterseals, United Way, Unity Performing Arts Foundation, and Northeast Indiana Works. His previously published books include Somewhere Bluebirds Fly and Crossing Over: One Woman’s Escape from Amish Life. He lives in Fort Wayne, Indiana.