In January, when cancer had barged into the life of Bobbye Sloan a second time, she and husband Jerry Sloan called a press conference. In their no-nonsense Midwestern style, the Sloans announced that Bobbye had pancreatic cancer and that at her insistence, Jerry would finish the season as head coach of the Utah Jazz.
Bobbye Sloan promised then to "do whatever I have to to stay here with this wonderful man as long as I can. And we're gonna do this thing together."
Shortly after the Jazz season ended this spring, the Sloans returned to their hometown of McLeansboro, Ill., for the last time as a couple. Bobbye Sloan died Friday at age 61. She spent most of her final days at the family home with her husband of 41 years at her side.
Bobbye Sloan was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1997, shortly after the Utah Jazz's first trip to the NBA finals. Her battle continued through a second trip to the finals against the Chicago Bulls the following year. Both title runs ended in defeat. But Bobbye Sloan stared down breast cancer and became a strong advocate for cancer prevention and research.
She also used the occasion to persuade Jerry Sloan to give up a three-pack-a-day cigarette habit and make other lifestyle changes. "He came home one night right after Christmas and had been out drinking and smelling like the bar," Bobbye Sloan told the New York Times in 1998. "I said to him, 'Here I am fighting for my life, and you're snuffing yours out.' "
Jerry Sloan heeded his wife's wishes, giving up the cigarettes and time spent in bars. The Sloans, sweethearts since their freshman year in high school, started a new tradition of taking long walks, which seemed to restore their health and deepen their emotional bond.
More than six years after Bobbye's initial diagnosis with breast cancer, a malignant tumor was detected in her pancreas last December. The pancreatic cancer was unrelated to the earlier breast cancer, physicians said. It was a huge blow to the couple, as Bobbye told the press in January, "because we really thought we had this all licked in the past."
Still, Bobbye Sloan, a former nurse, insisted that no one pity her or the situation. She wanted to live life as normally and as long as possible. That meant that Jerry would continue to coach the Jazz for the remainder of the 2003-04 season, although he occasionally missed a few games to tend to her care. Shortly before they returned to Illinois for the last time in April, Jerry announced he planned to return to the Utah Jazz in the fall for a 17th consecutive season as head coach, but much depended upon his wife's health.
We join other Utahns in extending our deep condolences to the Sloan family and a collective gratitude for Bobbye's strength of character as she faced life-threatening illnesses and other challenges.