Jade Pusey is a careful man. In his line of work you have to be. Jade is a cop.

So he takes care of details. He locks his doors. He services his car on time. He keeps all his insurance premiums paid up.

But as often seems to happen in life, it's the eventuality you don't plan for that smacks you upside the head.

Three months ago, Jade found out he has cancer.

And not just any cancer but a relentless form of stomach cancer so rare it's estimated that no more than 200 people have it in the entire world.

So rare that — you guessed it — Jade's insurance policy doesn't cover it.


Doctors have told Jade that there is a procedure that has worked on related cancers and there is a chance it could also work on his. It involves an intensive dose of chemotherapy that first kills off all bone marrow, followed by a re-infusion of Jade's stem cells, and finally an infusion of Jade's brother's stem cells to take over Jade's stem cells and create a new immune system that will attack the cancerous cells rather than ignore them.

It is an elaborate, all-out assault of D-Day proportions with a price tag of $200,000.

Jade almost died and got it over with the day they told him how much it costs.

But then he looked at his wife Tanya and their 14-month-old son Garrett, who is the center of their universe, and he uttered a word a tough old proud cop never thought he would utter.

H-E-L-P.


The Get-Jade-That-Operation-And-Save-His-Life campaign has been going strong for more than four weeks now. Already, more than $70,000 in individual donations have poured in, alongside nearly $10,00 from garage sales, checks in the mail, street corner lemonade stands and teenage girls selling pizzas.

Family and friends have pitched in to create a Web site; jadepusey.com, a post office box for donations (P.O. Box 1144, Riverton 84065), an account at Zions Bank (ask for the Jade Pusey Foundation Fund), and an account with the West Jordan Rotary Club. Money keeps flowing in. Tanya goes to the mailbox each day and braces herself for a good cry.

"Yesterday, I got a letter from Houston," she says. "Inside was a check for $50. On the 'for' line someone had written 'God Listens.' "

Tomorrow, the Riverton Community Center near Jade and Tanya's home will host a car wash and garage sale in conjunction with Riverton's annual safety fair. Simultaneously, a friend of Jade's in Boise will be raising money at "Uncle Jade Day" at a park there.

On June 2, Tanya's brother in Dallas has organized a benefit golf tournament while on June 8, Jade's brother, Robert, a Salt Lake defense attorney, will auction off his Harley Davidson motorcycle in conjunction with a $10 valley motorcycle ride and benefit dinner sponsored by the Barbary Coast Saloon in Murray.

And on June 13, Attorney General Mark Shurtleff, Jade's boss (Jade is the A.G. office's director of law enforcement), has reserved the State Capitol for a $50-a-plate benefit dinner and silent auction featuring a Jazz basketball signed by John Stockton.

View Comments

Jade admits to being as overwhelmed by the outpouring of goodness as by the news he has cancer — and he uses the goodness to trump the badness.

"One day I was feeling pretty down so I started to think of all the people who have helped," he says. "I got to 150 people before I realized I couldn't even think of all the people I know who are helping, let alone the people I don't know.

"Every bit of this ordeal has been truly amazing to watch."


Lee Benson's column runs Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Please send e-mail to benson@desnews.com.

Join the Conversation
Looking for comments?
Find comments in their new home! Click the buttons at the top or within the article to view them — or use the button below for quick access.