What seemed like an annoying accident at the time—being bucked off of her horse and breaking her heel bone—may have saved Shelby Robin’s life. When this happened in August 1999, doctors discovered what they thought was a benign bone cyst. After unsuccessful treatments over the next few months, Shelby ’s parents took her to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston; on January 11, 2000 , she was diagnosed with Ewing ’s Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. As bad as the news was, it could have been worse had they found out much later.

Shelby ’s parents, Barbara and Jon, were surprised at Shelby ’s reaction to the news of the amputation. She shed a single tear and then later that day told them since she couldn’t stop this from happening, she would just go forward and move on from here. Through chemotherapy and the amputation, Shelby remained upbeat and strong.

The perky 15-year-old with the indomitable spirit has been an inspiration to young and old alike. Six weeks after the amputation, Shelby was fitted with a prosthesis, which is now just part of her life. She has not missed a beat and was a cheerleader in the seventh and eighth grade at Branch Crossing Junior High in The Woodlands, Texas , a suburb of Houston . Currently, she is a busy ninth grader at The Woodlands High School/McCullough campus and among her many activities are Student Council, cheering for Woodlands Elite Cheer Company, a competitive traveling squad that took first place at the American Spirit Nationals in Corpus Christi, TX in March and loves attending her brother’s varsity baseball games. She also gives hope to other cancer patients and their families by visiting with them before and after their surgery to show that life does go on after amputation – all this while maintaining an A average in Honors and PreAp classes.

Shelby has been named the first official National “Spokeskid” for The Sunshine Kids Foundation, a national nonprofit organization that provides positive activities and programs for children with cancer across the United States , Canada and Mexico . In this role, Shelby will be called upon to travel, speaking to different organizations specifically about her own personal experiences and generally about what youngsters like her face as cancer patients.

Shelby credits the support from her family (mom, dad and older brother Shea), her friends and her community with helping her get through those difficult times. She is determined to live as full and normal a life as possible and has demonstrated that this minor inconvenience cannot stop her from achieving success. One of her major goals is to attend Harvard and to be a cheerleader there and then to become a professional baseball scout.

Shelby has shown maturity beyond her years since the diagnosis of her cancer and is determined to make a difference in the lives of other amputees, especially children. Besides her involvement with The Sunshine Kids Foundation, Shelby has done promotional work for the American Cancer Society and was honored by them in the fall of 2002 with the Courage Award. She has also been awarded the National Charity League’s Heart Award and the community service award by Prudential Financial Services. She was profiled in an article in inMotion magazine, which is geared toward those with amputations, as well as being featured in numerous local newspaper and television interviews.