04/27/2021
For those of our B.A.D (Bluedog Arms &Defense) family that do not know Stephanie, I want to share a little background so you will realize just how incredibly remarkable she is. I could list dozens of adjectives to describe her, but after you read this, you'll understand fully.
Stephanie Bynum Bates
Steph was born on May 18th 1982 in Spearman, Texas. She grew up there with her parents Kurt & Lelia Bynum and a younger brother Paul Bynum. She breezed through school as an Honor student while working locally. She loved running track and was a part of a State Track Championship in 2000 where the team earned 2 school records that still stand today.
She was always passionate about serving her country as her grandfather did and shortly before graduation she enlisted in the United States Army. She attended basic training at Ft. Sill, Ok the summer after graduation. Her next stop was Ft. Sam Houston in San Antonio, Tx. for advanced training to become a Medical Lab Technician. As it did for most, 9/11 changed everything and Stephanie was deployed to Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. She served her country with pride and was Honorably discharged as a Combat Veteran in 2003. She enjoyed returning to her hometown to speak with classes about being in the service and was offered the opportunity to thank the community that raised her during a Veteran’s Day speech to the school district.
Following her time in the service, she followed in her mother’s footsteps earning her Associates Degree in Nursing to continue serving others. Stephanie met and married Kyler Bates in 2005 and they have 2 beautiful daughters, Hanna Jean and Emily Jayne. Hanna is now 17 and is active in Art and taking early college classes. She is looking forward to attending college for her business degree. Emily is 14, active in Theater and Basketball and is looking forward to getting her Driving permit this summer.
Stephanie’s passion to serve continued as she became the Director of Nursing at Perryton’s Senior Village Nursing Home and was quickly recognized as a top leader in the industry. Kyler and Stephanie moved to Abilene TX in 2016 as career opportunities expanded for Stephanie to travel Texas teaching and training teams to provide great care. Kyler changed his career from working at Roberson Wireline to supporting Stephanie’s dream and career goals full time. She served as a Director of Clinical Operations and as the Vice President of Clinical Operations while climbing in her career. Stephanie has since taken a step back in her career and is currently working at a Mesa Springs Healthcare, a local Skilled Nursing Facility, as the Director of Nurses. She helped lead the team through navigating the Pandemic and Covid outbreaks for the last year.
Stephanie was diagnosed February 4th, 2021 with Stage 4 Metastatic Colon Cancer. While a cure or complete healing isn’t achievable with this stage of her cancer, intense chemotherapy was started in March in hopes of achieving remission and to prolong her projected 2 year life expectancy. Stephanie’s primary goal today is to be present at her youngest daughter’s graduation in 2024.
Stephanie is a Christian and believes strongly in the power of prayer and knows God works miracles every day. She is grateful for the constant love and support during this time as she and her family work to navigate this new path.
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