stage 4 lung cancer never smoked :: Article Creator 'Grandma, Were You Afraid To Die?' Reader Has One Big Reason To Beat Lung Cancer Happy birthday Sloane! Eight years old, tomorrow. Sorry about being early, but my column doesn't run on Tuesdays, and in my profession — newspapering, ask your grandmother about it — a day early is far better than a day late. We've never met. But your grandmother is a reader. She contacted me in October, wanting me to write something, and after patiently waiting for ... Gee ... Six months, told me the story about how your birth saved her life and how you inspire her every day. Which struck me as the sort of story a little girl should hear — how she saved a life, just by showing up. Because if you can do that, without even trying, imagine what else you may do someday. Your grandmother, Maida Mangiameli, lives — thanks to you — in Hawthorn Woods. When your mom, Kate, was pregnant with you, she...