Flash mob dances, shows community support for Battle Creek woman with cancer

Tiffany Yager thought her husband was being forgetful.

Ray Yager, head trainer at Burn Boot Camp in Battle Creek, apparently left his keys at the gym. So the couple needed to stop by to pick them up.

She thought they were on their way to a singing event for the oldest of their three daughters. He actually left behind the keys on purpose, the final piece of a plan that was six weeks in the making.

Ray had parked and escorted a confused Tiffany to a chair on the bed of their truck when about 100 people poured out of the gym and their vehicles.

As a flash mob, they then performed a choreographed dance in the parking lot as a show of support for Tiffany, who was diagnosed with both acute myelogenous leukemia and skin cancer in January.

“Wait a minute, these are my favorite songs. They are dancing for me!" Tiffany said of realizing it was a flash mob. "It was very surreal, seeing everyone I know. And it was a lot of choreography and was very well put together... We’ve just seen the best in people for nine months now.”

The flash mob is the latest example of the community offering support to the Yager family during Tiffany's ongoing medical journey.

'Had I not gotten COVID...'

Since being diagnosed with AML Leukemia, Tiffany has spent a total of 90 days at the University of Michigan Hospital in Ann Arbor, where she underwent chemotherapy, other treatments and multiple procedures, including a stem cell transplant. In October, she will reach 100 days post-transplant and will have a bone marrow biopsy to determine if any leukemia has returned.

"Then I have a good chance of making it to one year," Tiffany explained. "If I make it to one year, bone marrow biopsy shows no cancer, I have a good chance of making it to three years; after three years, if I end up making it to five, then I’m in remission."

According to cancer.gov, survival rates for AML are improving through advanced medicine, with approximately 60% to 70% of adults with AML expected to attain remission status after appropriate induction therapy and more than 45% of adults with AML who reach remission expected to survive three or more years and possibly be cured.

Due to an aggressive mutation of her leukemia, Tiffany said doctors have informed her she has a 40% chance of survival following her stem cell transplant. Had it not been for a bout with COVID-19 that led to the discovery of the leukemia, she said she likely would have succumbed to the blood cancer without ever knowing she had it.

“I had been not feeling well for a few months last fall. I was really fatigued," Tiffany said. "I was working a lot and we have three little kids, so I just kept telling myself, 'I’m just a tired mom.' But I was really tired."

In January, Tiffany tested positive for COVID-19. Along with her increasing fatigue, she started having symptoms not typically associated with the coronavirus, including a small wound not healing before it became infected. Seeking relief and some answers, she and Ray went to the emergency room at Bronson Battle Creek Hospital, where a blood culture showed an extremely high white blood cell count, suggesting leukemia.

After being told of the potential for cancer, the Yagers planned to stop at home, collect a few things and hug their kids goodbye before driving to the hospital in Ann Arbor for treatment. Instead, Tiffany was rushed via ambulance.

"The doctor said, ‘You don’t understand. Your white blood count, the cancer in your blood is so high, at most, you would survive another two days before you die.' She said I would get so tired I would fall asleep and not wake up," Tiffany recalled.  “Had I not gotten COVID, I would not have gone to the hospital. I would have stayed home and died.” 

90 days in the hospital

After her Jan. 23 leukemia diagnosis, Tiffany immediately began her first round of chemotherapy, requiring a nonstop drip for 170 hours. She shared her diagnosis with friends and followers on her social media pages, asking for prayers. She had not yet revealed that she had also recently been diagnosed with skin cancer on her nose.

After 29 days in the hospital, Tiffany did not reach remission for her leukemia. With the threat of her skin cancer further spreading, due to her immune system being further compromised, she returned to Ann Arbor to have surgery, with doctors removing her nose and reconstructing it. The operation required more than 200 stitches.

Ray essentially became "a single dad" to the couple's young daughters, now ages 8, 4 and 2. Due to hospital restrictions, the children were unable to visit their mother but stayed in communication through video chats.

"It’s been hard for our daughters, but they have been so resilient," Ray said. "Seeing her, they draw strength."

During her 90 days of nonconsecutive inpatient treatment, Tiffany went through two rounds of chemotherapy, seven bone marrow biopsies, seven spinal taps, and surgery to remove her skin cancer, suffering from high fevers, multiple infections and mucositis, which made it difficult to eat.

Through it all, Tiffany leaned on her family and friends for support and pushed herself to move on a stationary bike in her hospital room after the the chemotherapy had sapped her of her energy.

"I just wanted to get home to my kids," she said. “God didn’t save me from dying within two days to let me just die. So I must survive, make it out of this and live and have a story to tell.” 

Following a successful stem cell transplant using donated cells from one of her brothers, Tiffany rang a gong in the hospital on July 17 and was released to go home. Ray stopped working to become her primary caregiver. Tiffany has had to take a leave of absence from her job at the Battle Creek Federal Center, where she's worked for almost 20 years, leaving the family without a means of income.

Leaning on faith, family and community

Throughout Tiffany's medical journey, she and Ray have provided updates on social media and Ray produced videos posted to YouTube, garnering thousands of likes, shares and comments offering prayers and support.

A GoFundMe page was created to help the Yagers cover medical bills and their loss of income, raising more than $42,000. Tiffany's coworkers at the Federal Center donated months of vacation time to her, which has allowed her to maintain her insurance coverage.

Other examples of community support include Battle Creek businesses Plumeria Botanical Boutique and Fab Face and Body each donating a day's worth of proceeds and DogZone providing shelter and training for the Yagers' two young dogs; a spaghetti dinner fundraiser to pay for their kids' tuition at Calhoun Christian School; multiple blood drives; a months-long meal train; a drive-by Jeep parade; and countless prayers from their faith community.

The flash mob was mainly comprised of friends and members of Burn Boot Camp, including Ray who nervously danced as he stood front and center. The surprise event was organized and choreographed by Tamara Babcock and Colleen Thome of the Shari Rarick School of Dance.

"(Tiffany) really has the most incredible friends and family and they all wanted to do it," Babcock said. “They all showed up. (Ray) was really nervous and did fantastic. He’s such a great person and coach."

All proceeds from T-shirt sales for the flash mob were donated to the Yager family.

“Because of the community, we’ve been able to get by," Tiffany said. “To think those people took all that time for six weeks to meet up and practice when they have their own lives and things to do is beyond special... Battle Creek is an awesome city."

Ray added: "We had talked about maybe moving somewhere warm. Everything we need is truly here. And after what we’ve been through and how the community has been, I don’t know how we could ever leave. It’s a truly amazing place and the people here are amazing.” 

Contact reporter Nick Buckley at nbuckley@battlecreekenquirer.com or 269-966-0652. Follow him on Twitter:@NickJBuckley