Patti Whitbeck
If you were to ask Tooele resident and mother of six, Patti Whitbeck, about her childhood, she would likely tell you with a big smile on her face that it was pure “magic.” With the “best parents on earth” and the freedom to let her imagination run wild while exploring alongside her 4 sisters and 2 brothers in the small and intimate setting of Beaver, UT, Patti grew up feeling safe, loved, and very blessed.
As wonderful as those years in Beaver were, however, over the years most of the family has made their way out to beautiful Tooele County, including her parents, with whom Patti and her husband of 20 years, Ted Whitbeck, and their two youngest children, now reside. Patti describes this living situation as a win-win for everyone-Patti and Ted can support Patti’s parents in their golden years, and her parents are now there to support, comfort, and laugh with them through the trial of cancer and other life events. They cherish spending time together as a family – especially enjoying delicious home cooked meals, game nights, and making holiday memories.
If you have ever met Patti Whitbeck, you will not be a bit surprised at her response to being asked about her favorite hobbies and interests. She simply says, “I LOVE PEOPLE!” Patti loves to meet and connect with all kinds of people and makes instant friends wherever she goes with her bright smile, willingness to listen with understanding and empathy, and with her words of encouragement and hopeful wisdom.
Patti is no stranger to the hardships of life. Her incurable diagnosis of Neuroendocrine Carcinoid Cancer in 2020 is just one of the many difficulties she has faced over the years. But perhaps Patti’s friend, Heidi, put it best when she said, “Patti knows struggle. Life has drug her through depths that most of us can’t even fathom...but it seems that every time life throws her a curveball, (and it has thrown many), she comes back even stronger, kinder, and more hopeful than before. She knows how to ‘get real’ about the hard times, then rise above them with joy and genuine connections with others. To know Patti is to know resilience, determination, grace in the face of fiery trial, and absolute pure charity for others.”
Perhaps these qualities are what make Patti such an incredible advocate in her passion for suicide awareness and prevention. Her message? She just wants everyone to know that “No matter how dark life gets, there is always hope.”
While Patti’s cancer cannot be treated with traditional chemotherapy and radiation, and although she carries an awareness that she will never have the opportunity to ring a “cancer-free” bell, she holds on to the fact that her cancer is slow growing and receives monthly injections to further slow the growth of the tumors that began in her abdomen and have spread to both her lymph nodes and liver.
In the meantime, she is doing everything she can to enjoy each day to its fullest. In fact, she says this appreciation for life is one of the greatest lessons that cancer has taught her. Although to some extent she has always known that life is fragile, she says that cancer has magnified that reality a hundred-fold. “I have learned to enjoy to the max the moments with those I love most. Every act of kindness matters,” declares Patti.
And although cancer creates incredible stress for Patti and her family both emotionally and financially, she appreciates the “silver linings” of coming to see how many people there are who truly and genuinely love her. She has keenly felt the prayers, tears, and service offered up in her behalf and has felt lifted up by her hope and faith in Jesus Christ. Undeniably, she has seen the words of the Savior in her favorite scripture in Doctrine & Covenants 84:88 come to life before her eyes: “I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up.” Patti is an angel to so many. It’s our turn to be angels for her.
As wonderful as those years in Beaver were, however, over the years most of the family has made their way out to beautiful Tooele County, including her parents, with whom Patti and her husband of 20 years, Ted Whitbeck, and their two youngest children, now reside. Patti describes this living situation as a win-win for everyone-Patti and Ted can support Patti’s parents in their golden years, and her parents are now there to support, comfort, and laugh with them through the trial of cancer and other life events. They cherish spending time together as a family – especially enjoying delicious home cooked meals, game nights, and making holiday memories.
If you have ever met Patti Whitbeck, you will not be a bit surprised at her response to being asked about her favorite hobbies and interests. She simply says, “I LOVE PEOPLE!” Patti loves to meet and connect with all kinds of people and makes instant friends wherever she goes with her bright smile, willingness to listen with understanding and empathy, and with her words of encouragement and hopeful wisdom.
Patti is no stranger to the hardships of life. Her incurable diagnosis of Neuroendocrine Carcinoid Cancer in 2020 is just one of the many difficulties she has faced over the years. But perhaps Patti’s friend, Heidi, put it best when she said, “Patti knows struggle. Life has drug her through depths that most of us can’t even fathom...but it seems that every time life throws her a curveball, (and it has thrown many), she comes back even stronger, kinder, and more hopeful than before. She knows how to ‘get real’ about the hard times, then rise above them with joy and genuine connections with others. To know Patti is to know resilience, determination, grace in the face of fiery trial, and absolute pure charity for others.”
Perhaps these qualities are what make Patti such an incredible advocate in her passion for suicide awareness and prevention. Her message? She just wants everyone to know that “No matter how dark life gets, there is always hope.”
While Patti’s cancer cannot be treated with traditional chemotherapy and radiation, and although she carries an awareness that she will never have the opportunity to ring a “cancer-free” bell, she holds on to the fact that her cancer is slow growing and receives monthly injections to further slow the growth of the tumors that began in her abdomen and have spread to both her lymph nodes and liver.
In the meantime, she is doing everything she can to enjoy each day to its fullest. In fact, she says this appreciation for life is one of the greatest lessons that cancer has taught her. Although to some extent she has always known that life is fragile, she says that cancer has magnified that reality a hundred-fold. “I have learned to enjoy to the max the moments with those I love most. Every act of kindness matters,” declares Patti.
And although cancer creates incredible stress for Patti and her family both emotionally and financially, she appreciates the “silver linings” of coming to see how many people there are who truly and genuinely love her. She has keenly felt the prayers, tears, and service offered up in her behalf and has felt lifted up by her hope and faith in Jesus Christ. Undeniably, she has seen the words of the Savior in her favorite scripture in Doctrine & Covenants 84:88 come to life before her eyes: “I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up.” Patti is an angel to so many. It’s our turn to be angels for her.
