INDY Foundation: Connecting through Cancer

INDY Foundation
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Welcome to the INDY Foundation: Connecting Through Cancer hosted by Kayla Keenan, founder of INDY Foundation, a non-profit located in central Minnesota. Here at INDY, we believe in supporting and connecting cancer warriors throughout their cancer journey. Our mission is to provide financial and community support to cancer warriors across Minnesota. Join us as we share inspiring stories, valuable resources and important updates to help you and your load ones navigate the challenges of cancer with strength and hope. Each episode will feature heartfelt conversations with cancer warriors, their families, and experts in the field, offering insights and encouragement for every step of the way. INDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

  1. 1d ago

    Signs From Heaven, Part Two: The Stories You Shared With Us

    Takeaways Kayla and the INDY Foundation asked their Facebook community to share their own signs from heaven, and the stories that came back ranged from a phone that rang for two years after a mother's death to a cross made of leaves on a quiet country drive.Feathers, coins (especially unexpected dimes), songs that follow you into every room, and dreams are some of the most commonly reported signs people notice after losing someone they love.Recognizing a sign from heaven isn't about meeting a strict checklist. It's about the connection you feel in the moment, whether that's a chickadee visiting a deer stand or a cardinal racing alongside a three-wheeler.Summary of the episode In this second episode of the Signs From Heaven miniseries on Connecting Through Cancer, host Kayla Keenan opens the conversation up to the INDY Foundation's community. After the foundation's Facebook page asked followers to share their own signs from loved ones who have passed, Kayla reads through what came back and walks through the signs people report most: feathers found in unexpected places, coins (dimes more often than the usual pennies), songs that seem to find you at exactly the right moment, and dreams that carry a sense of peace. She then shares four submitted stories in full. Laura describes a cardinal that raced her son's three-wheeler on the day of a funeral. Sarah Schmidt talks about her mom calling her phone for two years after she passed, always for a half ring and a hang-up, and how the number was disconnected when she tried calling it back. Kelly Summers shares a cross made of leaves that appeared on the fifth anniversary of her dad's passing while Higher by Creed played on the radio. And the show's own producer, Abbey, shares that chickadees visit her every hunting opener, a sign she connects to the grandfather and grandmother she lost to cancer. Kayla closes by reminding listeners that a sign doesn't need to be proven to matter. She encourages everyone to stay open-hearted to the mundane, unexpected moments, and invites listeners to keep sending in their own stories of connection. INDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

  2. Aug 11

    Are Signs From Loved Ones Real? Nine Years of Cardinals, Songs, and Butterflies

    Takeaways Signs from a loved one who has passed can show up in ordinary places, a song on the jukebox, a butterfly, an animal somewhere it has no reason to be, and they don't need to be proven to matter.The INDY Foundation's name traces back to a real moment: a horse named Indy at a county fair, days after Kyle's death, on the same theme he and Kayla had already talked about.Connecting Through Cancer has always been about connection, and Kayla makes the case that connection doesn't end when someone's cancer journey ends or when their life ends.Summary of the episode In this solo reflection, Kayla Keenan opens up about the signs she believes Kyle has sent her in the nine years since he passed away. She walks through the moments that have stopped her in her tracks: the unexplainable sunset on the day they celebrated his life, a horse named Indy at the county fair just days after his death (the same name that would go on to become the foundation), a song that follows her into nearly every bar she walks into, and a single cardinal that appeared once in her backyard and never again. Kayla is careful not to tell listeners what to believe. She sits with the uncertainty in the open, wondering out loud whether these moments are truly signs or whether she simply wants them to be, and lands on the idea that what matters isn't proof. It's how the moments make her feel: connected, remembered, not alone. The episode closes with an invitation. Kayla asks listeners to share their own signs, the songs, animals, dreams, or small unexplainable moments that made them stop and wonder if someone they lost was still finding a way to reach them. She reframes the show's core mission around this idea: Connecting Through Cancer isn't just about a diagnosis or a journey, it's about the connection that continues long after. Key Topics Covered: Signs from a loved one after loss (cardinals, songs, animals, butterflies)The real story behind how the INDY Foundation got its nameGrief, faith, and living with uncertainty instead of forcing an answerWhy connection doesn't end when a cancer journey or a life doesINDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

  3. Aug 4

    What a Cody Johnson Song Taught Me About Grief and Living Fully

    Takeaways Cody Johnson's song "Till I Can't" became an unexpected mirror for Kayla nine years after losing her husband Kyle to cancer, a reminder that we don't know how many tomorrows we have.Strength after loss isn't something you build alone. It's a collective force carried by the people who show up for you, again and again.Making the most of your time comes down to five practical shifts: prioritizing connection, practicing gratitude, being present, embracing vulnerability, and seeking joy in ordinary moments.Summary of the episode As the ninth anniversary of becoming a widow passed this month, Kayla found herself reflecting on nine years since losing her husband, Kyle, to cancer. Driving in her car a few days later, Cody Johnson's "Till I Can't" came on the radio and hit her with unexpected weight. The song's lyrics about putting off calls and visits with the people we love landed differently for someone who has already lived through the "before" and "after" of losing the person closest to her. Kayla walks through what has changed in the nine years since Kyle died, and what has stayed the same. She talks about the yearly ritual of going back through the cards she received while he was sick and after his funeral, and how that practice reminds her that her strength never came from inside herself alone. It came from the tribe of people who showed up, who reminded her it was okay to cry, and who slowly helped her find her way back to joy. Key Topics Covered: Reflecting on nine years since becoming a widow and losing husband Kyle to cancerHow Cody Johnson's "Till I Can't" reframed the urgency of connecting with loved ones nowThe yearly ritual of revisiting sympathy and support cards as a source of comfortWhy strength after loss is a collective force, not something built aloneFive practical ways to live with more intention: connection, gratitude, presence, vulnerability, and joyA quiet Sunday moment with her three-year-old that reframed how fast life movesINDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

  4. Jul 28

    Pink in the Park: Breast Cancer Survivors Share Their Stories at the St. Cloud Rox

    Takeaways Regular mammograms catch breast cancer earlier, and earlier detection consistently leads to easier treatment and better outcomes. Every survivor interviewed said the same thing.Genetic testing, like BRCA gene testing, can give women and families critical information before a diagnosis happens, not just after.Community support, whether from a foundation, a board member, or a ballpark full of strangers, makes a real difference for people going through cancer treatment.Summary of the episode This episode takes you on site to Pink in the Park Night at the Rox, an annual partnership between INDY Foundation and Alliance Imaging held at a St. Cloud Rox baseball game. The survivors range from one year to three years past diagnosis, and their paths were all different. Colleen Kennedy went through chemo and radiation and is now three years out, with a sister recently diagnosed early enough to skip chemo entirely. Lisa Powers found out the day before this interview that she has no evidence of cancer, caught through her annual mammogram. Danielle Murphy was diagnosed at 34 after early detection and BRCA gene testing, a family history that traces back to her mother. Lisa Melanin is two months cancer-free after facing a hard-fought battle with triple negative breast cancer in both breasts. Rounding out the conversation, Courtney, executive director of INDY Foundation, talks about what it means to wrap the community around six cancer warriors for a night, and Troy Lenarz, board member and representative of Alliance Imaging, speaks to why the partnership between INDY Foundation and the St. Cloud Rox matters. Every voice in this episode lands on the same message: get your mammogram, know your family history, and don't wait. INDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

  5. Jul 21

    What I'd Tell Myself Nine Years Into Grief

    In this episode of the Connecting Through Cancer podcast from INDY Foundation, Kayla reflects on the approaching nine-year heaven anniversary of Kyle’s passing, honoring their final days together and describing how grief can feel heavy and suffocating. Speaking to listeners who feel their story has ended, the host shares what they would tell their past self: grief was never meant to be carried forever, and surviving is not synonymous with healing. They discuss learning to “let go” not by forgetting or relinquishing love, but by releasing the weight that keeps someone stuck, noting that healing can deepen appreciation for what was shared. The host recalls hospice-room conversations filled with tears and laughter about dreams, love, and a future without Kyle, and encourages hope, faith, and community dialogue about finding joy again. 00:00 Welcome Back 00:05 Kyle’s Anniversary 00:43 When Loss Hits 01:19 A Message to Past Me 01:54 Surviving vs Healing 02:21 Learning to Let Go 02:54 Hospice Room Memories 03:41 Hope After Grief 04:18 Make Space for Hope 04:48 Join the Conversation 05:01 Share and Support INDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

  6. Jul 14

    What Would Your Loved One Say About You in Heaven?

    Takeaways A single quote scrolled past on Instagram can completely reframe how you think about grief, legacy, and the story you're currently living.Grief's questions change over time. What starts as "why did this happen" can eventually become "what story am I living right now."You still get to choose the story your loved ones would tell about you today. That story isn't finished.Summary of the episode As Kyle's nine-year heaven anniversary approaches, Kayla shares what happened when a quote stopped her mid-scroll on Instagram: "What if every time you thought of them, it was because they were telling a story about you in heaven?" That single line became the seed for this episode, a reflection on nine years of telling Kyle's story and what it might mean to ask, for once, what story he would tell about her. Kayla walks through how her relationship with grief has changed since Kyle's cancer journey and death. In the early years, the questions were "why me," "why Kyle," "why did he have to get cancer." Over time, those questions shifted into something different: not a search for a reason, but a search for the story she's currently living, and whether it's one worth telling. She talks honestly about the fork in the road after devastating loss, the pull toward addiction or numbing out, and the deliberate choice she made instead to build the INDY Foundation and turn her family's cancer journey into something that helps others. She's clear that grief and resilience aren't opposites. Both can be true at the same time. The episode closes with a direct challenge to the listener: think about the people in your life who have passed. What story would they tell about you today? Not someday. Today. Because the story isn't over yet, and there's still time to write it the way you want it told. Key Topics Covered: Grief on a heaven anniversary and how anticipatory grief shows up in the weeks beforeHow the questions grief asks change over years, from "why me" to "what story am I living"Choosing resilience over addiction or numbing out after devastating lossThe origin of the INDY Foundation, born out of Kyle's cancer journeyA direct challenge to reflect on what your own loved ones in heaven might say about you todayINDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

  7. Jul 7

    What Cancer Taught Me About Titles (And Why They Don't Matter)

    Takeaways Cancer is the great equalizer. It strips away titles, careers, and status, and leaves only presence.The people patients and caregivers remember aren't the most credentialed ones in the room. They're the ones who simply showed up.Influence doesn't require authority. Every person, regardless of title, has the power to make someone feel seen.In this solo episode of Connecting Through Cancer, host Kayla Keenan steps back from the hospital room and into something she's been sitting with in her own life: how quickly titles stop mattering once cancer enters the picture. Kayla hasn't gone through cancer herself, but she has watched a spouse fight it, and that experience reshaped how she sees status, career, and what actually makes someone feel loved. Kayla walks through what she calls cancer's "leveling" effect. In an infusion chair, a hospital room, or beside someone you love, nobody cares about your job title, your LinkedIn profile, or what's printed on your business card. What people remember instead is who showed up. The nurse who remembered a patient's favorite blanket. The receptionist who greeted her by name every time. The neighbor who quietly mowed the lawn. The friend who dropped off dinner without asking a single question. She reflects on influence, too, and pushes back on the idea that it requires a platform or a leadership title. Influence, in Kayla's words, requires humanity, not authority. Every listener, no matter their job or position, has the ability to leave someone better than they found them. The episode closes with a challenge: instead of asking what title you want next, ask how you make the people around you feel. Encouraged. Loved. Hopeful. Like they matter. That, Kayla says, is a legacy worth building, and it doesn't require a promotion. INDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

  8. Jun 30

    What a Hospital Window on the 4th of July Taught Me About Love

    Takeaways Cancer doesn't care about the calendar. Holidays don't pause treatment schedules, lab work, or the impossible decisions families are making every single day.Two realities can exist at the same time. Someone is watching fireworks. Someone is watching a heart monitor. Neither reality is wrong — but they are worlds apart, and the people inside the hospital deserve to be seen.Hope doesn't depend on your location. It isn't confined to a celebration. Hope can sit quietly beside a hospital bed. Hope can be found in the squeeze of a hand.Summary of the Episode In this episode of Connecting Through Cancer, Kayla Keenan reflects on what it means to celebrate the 4th of July when someone you love is fighting for their life — and what it felt like to stand beside that person, watching fireworks through a hospital window, while the rest of the world celebrated outside. Roughly ten years ago, Kayla sat on a couch next to a window overlooking the Mississippi River. Outside, families were on the riverbank, kids were running, boats were going by. Her phone was lighting up with photos and Snapchat stories and burgers on the grill. And she was exactly where she wanted to be — beside someone she loved, watching life happen through a pane of glass, while that person fought for theirs. That day changed her. Not because she wanted to be somewhere else, but because she realized something she has carried ever since: cancer doesn't pause for holidays. It doesn't care if it's Christmas morning, your anniversary, your child's birthday, or the Fourth of July. Treatment continues. Lab work continues. Pain continues. And families continue making impossible decisions while the rest of the world lights up the sky. In this reflective, deeply personal episode, Kayla explores how cancer redefines the meaning of freedom — not the fireworks-and-barbecue kind, but the kind that looks like clear scans, going home, sitting at your own kitchen table, and one more ordinary day with the people you love. She offers a message for every caregiver, patient, and family member spending this Fourth of July inside a hospital: you are not forgotten, and hope does not depend on your location. This episode is a gentle invitation to the rest of us, too. To send the text. Make the phone call. Drop off the meal. And remember that sometimes the greatest act of patriotism is simply caring for your neighbor. INDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

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Welcome to the INDY Foundation: Connecting Through Cancer hosted by Kayla Keenan, founder of INDY Foundation, a non-profit located in central Minnesota. Here at INDY, we believe in supporting and connecting cancer warriors throughout their cancer journey. Our mission is to provide financial and community support to cancer warriors across Minnesota. Join us as we share inspiring stories, valuable resources and important updates to help you and your load ones navigate the challenges of cancer with strength and hope. Each episode will feature heartfelt conversations with cancer warriors, their families, and experts in the field, offering insights and encouragement for every step of the way. INDY is short for "I'm Not Done Yet," a phrase often said by the late Kyle Strand during his courageous battle with colon cancer. Kyle's four-year journey was both extremely challenging and profoundly beautiful. Though he lost his battle in July 2017, his legacy lives on through his two dying wishes: to establish the INDY Foundation and to inspire others to live every day to its fullest. In August 2017, the INDY Foundation was born, continuing Kyle's mission to support and uplift cancer warriors everywhere. Find more information here: www.indy-foundation.org Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/ImNotDoneYetMN Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/indyfoundation/ Join our INDY Tribe - Inner Circle FB Group. A group for those affected by cancer. https://www.facebook.com/groups/202854020588761

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