09/10/2026
Meet this week’s Hero, Elizabeth Waltermeyer!
We first had the honor of meeting Elizabeth at our Breakfast of Champions event, and we are so grateful that we’ve had the opportunity to get to know her and hear more of her incredible story. Her journey is one of resilience, strength, and the power of community.
Elizabeth’s cancer journey began before she was even born. On June 20, 2006, she was born prematurely after her cancer caused complications during pregnancy and she was diagnosed with a rare kidney tumor called mesoblastic nephroma with atypical cellularity. Today, she is a kidney cancer survivor whose resilience, compassion, creativity, and strength continue to shape the person she is becoming.
Elizabeth’s passions include LEGO building, puzzles, dogs, traveling, photography, writing, and dancing. Looking five years beyond college, she hopes to work with a book publisher, live in the Pacific Northwest surrounded by several dogs, and give back to her community through volunteering.
Her advice to other young cancer survivors is powerful:
“There will always be challenges, however you've already endured the hardest thing by beating cancer, which makes you resilient and strong.”
Elizabeth also shared a beautiful perspective about the cards life deals us:
“We are all dealt a different hand, and we can be mad or sad that we didn't get the cards we wanted, or we can play the best we can with the cards we're dealt and stay in the game and don't fold.”
For Elizabeth, the childhood cancer community has meant everything. The people she met along the way became a second family, helping her understand her own experience while showing her the incredible kindness and generosity that exists in the world.
And when asked what she is most grateful for, her answer is simple: her family. Her parents chose to adopt a sick baby and pour their love, time, and resources into helping Elizabeth become the healthiest and happiest version of herself.
Her biggest dreams? Becoming a famous author, returning to Ireland to explore more of the country, and building a strong community of friends, neighbors, and loved ones around her.
Elizabeth, we are so proud to call you one of our My Hometown Heroes. Your story is a beautiful reminder that our beginnings don't define us—the way we choose to move forward does.
