04/03/2026
💜The 2026 Nick Lilleberg Open is sponsoring the Terri Benson family through all donations requested to go directly to her, as well as all raffle and mulligan proceeds from the day of the tournament.
💜Cash, check, credit, debit, PayPal, and Venmo are accepted. See lillebergfamilyfoundation.com for address or links to donate, note Terri’s name in the donation. Lilleberg Family Foundation is a 501c3 and will send out tax exempt receipts.
💜Jon & Terri Benson Story, written by Jon:
It is very surreal to be writing a cancer story of my own for the Lilleberg Family Foundation. The AMAZING Nick Lilleberg was a dear friend to both my brother, Jeff, and me. When Nick was diagnosed with cancer, myself and everybody else in our hometown of Atwater, were in shock. I was in disbelief knowing that one of the kindest, funniest, most generous guys I ever met was dealt such a heavy hand. Seeing him live his life to the fullest, with humor, grace, humility and strength was something special to behold. It solidified my belief that God saves the toughest battles for his bravest followers. Our family is incredibly honored to be mentioned in the same breath as Nick. His life and legacy lives on in our household as we attempt to live our lives, and face this challenge, the way he did. Thank you, Nick.
My wife, Terri Benson (Ernst) was born in Osage, Iowa, and lived in her family’s hometown of Rockford, Iowa, for the first few years of her life. At the age of two, she moved to Jackson, Minnesota, where she graduated from Jackson High School in 1994. She attended Southwest Minnesota State, where we met. We currently live in St. Cloud and have two children, Lincoln and Jayna, and a dog, Juice. Both Lincoln and Jayna also attend SMSU, just like mom and dad. Terri is finishing her 26th year as an English teacher at Sartell High School, and I’m finishing my 27th year teaching 6th grade and coaching in the St. Cloud School District. We will celebrate our 26th wedding anniversary on July 22.
As a busy 2025 holiday season was winding down, Terri began experiencing some bloating and discomfort in her tummy. After eating poorly for several weeks, she figured it was simply mother nature telling her it was time to settle back into a normal routine and get back on the treadmill. After a week of discomfort, she went in to see her doctor the first week of January. An ultrasound and CT scan a day later uncovered the culprit. Terri was diagnosed with Stage 4 Ovarian Peritoneal Cancer. She was immediately scheduled for surgery at the University of Minnesota Medical Center. Prior to surgery,Terri had several paracentesis procedures to remove ascites fluid from her abdomen. On January 23rd, our surgical team at the U went in for a closer look. The decision was made to end the procedure early and hold off on Cytoreduction until we had blasted this cancer with at least three rounds of chemotherapy. They call this the “sandwich method”. She began chemo the next day. As we write our cancer story today, we have just finished three rounds of chemo and are awaiting scan results that will allow her to undergo cytoreduction surgery on March 27. Once she recovers from this aggressive procedure, she will have three to six additional rounds of chemotherapy and a VICTORY PARADE ahead of her.
Although we’ve been given a bumpy road to travel, Terri remains upbeat and enthusiastic, returning to work whenever she is able. Her current record is eight days in a row… her students are keeping a running track:) The admin teams, staff, and students at both Sartell High School and the St. Cloud School District continue to be unbelievably supportive through this process. We are both grateful and humbled by the kindness and care exemplified by our colleagues, friends, and family. Our hearts are filled with gratitude and hope that we will indeed beat this thing into remission and be better people because of it. Terri is a strong woman, and she continues to show up for this fight.
We’ve got this quote written in dry-erase marker on the mirror in our bedroom: “The woman who thinks she can, and the woman who thinks she can’t, are both right.” We continue to live by these words everyday.
We have started a CaringBridge site to keep everybody informed as we navigate this thing together. You can visit our page for closer look at our journey here: https://tinyurl.com/58njvcte
- Jon
