Successive challenge and resolve in the Anderson family – Lynden Tribune

From helping son Jensen deal with a tumor to developing a CBD product, its a story of many chapters

LYNDEN The story has been written over time and across chapters. It involves a Lynden family with multiple businesses, a child who left hospice at age 4 to live on into his teen years, a mother living with multiple sclerosis, an appearance on TV, a big beautiful white barn and farmhouse. And the future is still being written and lived.

Self-proclaimed now Lynden Lifer Julie (Beld) Anderson graduated from Lynden Christian High School in 1987. Then she had her fill of things in the Seattle area: she went to Shoreline Community College for business, worked for Nordstrom and won the title of Miss Seattle 1990 in the Miss America program for scholarship money.

From working in cosmetics at Nordstrom to working there as a security manager, she met Jeff Anderson at a gym; she married at age 23 and they moved to Whatcom County. Once their five children started coming along, Julie focused on her role at home.

Husband Jeff graduated from Ingraham High School in 1985 and the University of Washington in business administration. His work path took him from Huizenga Brothers Construction to working his way up at Morse Steel, from inside sales to sales manager and then to vice president of sales and marketing. While planning to have their own business, they got some hard news.

This chapter could also be called a miracle, plain and simple.

Jensen is the fourth of the Andersons five children. It wasnt until he was 3 years old that he showed any signs of health problems, which only escalated in urgency and focus.

It started with Jensen having back pain at night. Eventually, a tumor was located in a 16-inch length of his spinal cord. The diagnosis was a mouthful: juvenile pilocytic astrocytoma (JPA). After an initial surgery, he was perfect, with an 18-inch scar to show on his neck and back. Then a year later, in much pain he went to the emergency room at Childrens Hospital. He woke up paralyzed the next morning, saying Mommy, I cant move my arms, I cant move my legs! At that point the doctors thought it was a drug reaction, but Julie felt differently.

Jensen was given an MRI scan late that afternoon, and as Jeff and Julie walked through the hospital to grab coffee, they heard their names on the loudspeakers. Oh no. We thought he had died, they said. They knew that was a possibility.

We had to be prepared for this, they said. It was very scary. They prepared themselves for what the news would be.

It turned out Jensen had had an allergic reaction to medications for the MRI. Along the way of this journey, they have learned many large new diagnosis words this time it was autonomic dysreflexia.

I was giving Jensen up to God, Julie said. They prayed.

The next morning, the surgery team came to Jensens room on rounds. This was the first time the Andersons had seen their doctor. It had been 24 hours since 4-year-old Jensen said he couldnt move his arms or legs. The doctor still wanted to wait on Jensens surgery, but Julie begged them to do surgery and decompress the boys spinal cord that day or she and Jeff feared he wouldnt live. The team finally relented and took Jensen in for surgery late that afternoon.

It was a complex and grim surgery involving removal of eight vertebrae to let the spinal cord swell.

The resident doctor was crying, saying, The worst things happen to the nicest people, Julie Anderson said. But Jensen didnt die.

That stay at the hospital was for almost a month. Jeff and Julie learned how to care for their precious, paraplegic son. Julie would have to position herself right next to him on the couch. I had to be touching him all day or he would cry. He needed the comfort. Each day, Jeff would sit him up and say. Jensen, give me a thumbs up! There was no movement at first. Finally one day a few months later, Jensens thumb twitched.

It was a miracle.

And then they were sent home with hospice. Jeff and Julie and all their children, especially brother Easton, worked with Jensen every day. They started physical therapy. A year after Jensen had gone completely paralyzed, the Andersons celebrated Mothers Day at their house with both sides of their family and Jensen got to show off how he could walk with a walker!

Internet research discloses that in most cases, the JPA tumor is a benign, slow-growing one that usually does not spread to surrounding brain tissue. Symptoms will vary depending upon the size and location of the tumor.

Unfortunately by August, Jensens tumor had grown again and he was no longer able to sit up or walk. The oncologist wanted Jensen to have radiation. Business plans were put on hold to focus on Jensen. Calls were made to Texas, and Jeff and Julie decided to move to Texas for two months so that Jensen could have proton radiation therapy to protect the organs around the therapy site from dangerous radiation beams. They left home with five kids. Jeff left his job of 14 years and they put their faith in God: We could barely think straight.

Proton beam therapy uses protons rather than x-rays to treat cancer.

Jensen was accepted right away at the acclaimed MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston attached to the University of Texas. They had found the hospital through a Lynden connection: Another local baby had gone there for treatment and former Lyndenite Kent Postma worked there (now vice president of ambulatory operations, according to LinkedIn). The next blow, however, was that while sitting in the clinics office, they were told their insurance wouldnt cover the procedure. The total for Jensens treatment in 2010 was $150,000. They needed to make a down payment of $83,000 on the spot to get Jensen in for his appointment the next day. Julie wrote a check. No choice. They took out a loan.

They rented medical housing and a 15-passenger van to fit in seven people and a wheelchair for two months. Julies sister Charmae (Beld) Scheffer came for a visit with some of her kids as well as other friends from the area. Even though Jensen had started to throw up blood from his treatments, Texas friends and family were all able to celebrate Jensens 6th birthday in Houston.

Julies Seattle friend, Brittany Gabelein, asked if she could do a fundraiser for Jensens expensive treatment. The Lynden community and the Andersons friends and family came together and raised the whole $150,000 before the Andersons plane had landed back in Washington State. The family still is overcome with thankfulness and feels so blessed by the Lynden community.

Following the two months of living out of state, they hoped the worst was over, but there was more ahead when they got back home. Jensens spinal cord was so swollen and the pain was unbearable from the treatment that only steroids seemed to help. But that ballooned his weight from 40 to 100 pounds. Jeff was not employed yet, so he was home to help, especially with carrying Jensen around. The other kids would take turns sleeping with him in the living room on his double hospital bed. Jensen was offered hospice care again.

Facebook updates over the years on a special prayer page show regular trips to the ER and frantic flights to Childrens Hospital in Seattle. Nothing relating to this son has been the norm.

Finally, in the past year as he celebrated his 15th birthday, there have been fewer posts and more outings such as hiking the new Chanterelle Trail above Lake Whatcom in his wheelchair with his brothers Easton and Tristan.

Now, as a byproduct of closeness in age, of home schooling and health, Jensen and his younger brother Tristan are close friends. The family has often chosen for Tristan to move up a grade to be with his brother. Together they now go to the Lynden Academy part of the week and are homeschooled the rest. They previously were part of the MP3 Meridian program. They both enjoy video games, reading and family activities.

Chapter 2 Family businesses: Julies CBD, Two Sisters, and Stans Autobody

The family now owns its own businesses plural. While Jeff and oldest daughter, Ellie Gallion, operate Stans Auto Body in Bellingham, Julie, with her family, has the Two Sisters Koffie stand at Hinotes Corner (2014). Daughter Payton Anderson is managing that operation. Julie and Jeff developed Julies CBD in 2019.

Jensen wasnt, and isnt, the only family member with health concerns. Looking back, Julie detected the first signs of her MS during her pregnancy with Jensen, experiencing numbness over her whole right side, but she wasnt diagnosed until 2015. In 2016 she got her medical marijuana license after being one of the people who hated seeing the legalization of marijuana, she said.

Do I look like I have MS? Julie asked. No, she doesnt. She still looks much like someone who goes to the gym.

An episode may bring dizziness and poor vision, feeling weak and numb. Now with her own CBD not all CBD has shown the same results she said she feels 90 percent better. The tincture goes under the tongue to absorb into the blood. It is anti-inflammatory and a great resource for autoimmune conditions.

The note on her patented whole-plant, full-spectrum CBD bottle says, Thank you for buying my CBD, you wont regret it! After searching and trying a myriad of CBDs over the last three years, I have finally found one that has not only give me my life back from Multiple Sclerosis (MS) but also got rid of my debilitating migraines.

It continues, If you have tried CBD in the past and it has not worked, you may not have had good CBD. I have done all the legwork for you. My husband Jeff and I have done extensive research and guess who was used as a lab rat? Yes, that was me! I put my name on this product because I believe in it and I believe it will help your ailments just like it helped mine.

The family helps with the CBD project, from labeling and packing to setting up a website. They have seen one teenager who had extreme anxiety, about 10 panic attacks a day and wasnt able to attend school, helped by it and is now attending classes again. Also, an adult with ulcerative colitis has reported having no more symptoms.

For those interested in trying Julies CBD, they can contact her through the Julies CBD Facebook page or buy at Two Sisters Koffie. She has been consulting with the Whatcom County Health Department after she and Jeff met with a marijuana farmer in the San Juans.

Chapter 3 Taking on TV as a Family

In the past year researching family shows online, Julie found a show dedicated to that very thing. The family was chosen and were interviewed several times before a five-person TV crew came out for Family Rules. The segment aired on BYUTV (byutv.org) in December. It can still be viewed online. The episode is titled Finance and Family.

The Anderson family was filmed for two days at home and at both businesses. It took awhile for them to get used to having a TV crew around and being micd up every second, but eventually the crew felt like friends and stayed after filming for a family dinner with fresh corn on the cob.

Chapter 4 Fixing up the Farm and Seeing What is Next

The Andersons had to move out of their custom country home that Vincent Buys helped build when Jensen became paralyzed. Recently they were able to move back out into the country to a farmhouse that they made wheelchair-accessible. It was already beautiful with a wrap-around porch and views of farms and the river valley. They painted it white to match their barn with a flat floor and stanchions right out of the 1950s. There is plenty of room there for their big family, their businesses and a wheelchair.

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Successive challenge and resolve in the Anderson family - Lynden Tribune