Lena Randle
Send in the Angels. Faced with advanced lung cancer, Lena Randle wanted her bedroom to be a place to soothe her soul.
For years, Lena Randle supervised the Ladue Post Office—the one underneath the Clayton Post Office, not the abbreviated version behind the Mister Ed door at Ladue Pharmacy. All day long, she hiked up and down the steps of the building on Maryland. Eventually, she needed minor surgery to repair some broken bones in her toes. So, at 52 years old, she had a routine physical (complete with chest x-ray) just to be double sure it was all right for her to go under the knife.
It wasn't. One week before last Christmas, she heard the news: lung cancer, stage four.
"After the diagnosis, I would not get up," Randle says. "I would not get dressed; I would not put on makeup. But I changed my mind about that. Now I say, 'I will get up, I will get dressed as if I have some business to attend to.' Each day—because it might be my last one. And I don't want them to wheel me out of here ugly."
Since Christmas, Randle's taken medical leave from her job and is divvying up her time between hugs from her five grandchildren and reading. "Since I am not going to work, I have enough time to get up in the morning—and I get up very early—and study the Bible," Randle says. "This is something I always wanted to do but with going to work and other things, I always put it last. Now I'm putting it first and I feel so much better. By the time [her husband] John gets up, I'm excited to talk about what I just learned. I do what I'm supposed to do: Give some time to the Lord first. It carries me through the day."
But some days these days, strength comes in short supply. Always active, Randle was the one who came home and mowed the lawn—actually, all the lawns on her block in the Central West End. "I enjoy that. John likes to plant and I like to cut grass."
Her neighbors down the street will be cutting their own grass for a while. But the inability to be busy really bothers Randle. "I lose track of what I say or didn't say," she says. "It's kind of weird for me. I'm a multitasking person. I do three, four, five things at one time. Now I can do one. I don't appreciate it. Nothing's getting done."
Randle lives in a home her parents first purchased in 1967. They passed away and the building was left boarded up for a decade. Then, in 1994, divorced with three daughters, Randle moved home from California and into the abandoned abode. The house was, in her words, "horrible. I put in windows, wiring and air conditioning. It never had air conditioning, but I didn't think I could stand a St. Louis summer without it."
Randle went to work at the post office and, in a positive turn on the term "going postal," she fell in love--with John, a co-worker. They got married in 1999. All three of her daughters live in St. Louis: her oldest, Lacy, is a registered nurse; the second, Xavier (called "The Boss") is in banking and Margaux works in retail design.
"I give my daughters credit," Randle says. "They stepped right in and started doing what needed to be done. They checked things out, did all the research they could, and we sat down and talked about it." John's two daughters have also been very helpful. "I am very pleased with what we have done with our daughters," Randle says. "They are women, and that is a real good feeling. I make sure to tell them thanks each day." She also has a son-in-law who regularly treks to Tennessee to stock up on Randle's favorite ice cream, vanilla Blue Bell. "The angels sustain you," she says.
We called on some angels of our own. First Lena Randle's e-mail arrived. It read: "I've just recently begun chemotherapy treatment and need something to do that won't be an extravagant splurge of funds but an extravagant splurge of selfishness." While thrilled to be asked, we couldn't agree. Selfish? Nope. Snatching the last mocha fudge brownie when others haven't had their first, that's selfish. Wanting a nice bedroom? Please. Hardly.
Subsequent e-mails included shots of the room in question: loaded with furniture, lacking storage and without a restful moment in sight. We immediately called interior designer Bob Newton and asked him to help. Without a second breath, he agreed. He quickly called and conferred with his new client. When asked what she wanted her bedroom to be, Randle's response was unequivocal: "I want to make it a refuge for me so that when I roll over, all I have to do is smile because I see something pretty from every angle."
Her budget was $1,000, but in this case, we decided we would intentionally blow right past it--and get whatever else we needed donated. Gannon Painting and Decorating Co. volunteered to paint; the Clayton Sherwin-Williams store gave the paint. Custom Furniture Works graciously volunteered to make a king-sized platform bed with padded headboard. Carl Alspach of the Closet Factory took on the job of building a dresser/entertainment center and a computer station; Lowe's provided more than 80 square yards of carpet to cover two staircases, the landing and the bedroom; Michael Pepper of Edwin Pepper Interiors offered fabric for the bedspread and fabrication of the bedspread and dust ruffle. Vickie Smith of Rothman Furniture sent over a Spring Air Back Supporter king-sized mattress and boxed spring set. Crate & Barrel donated two black Balcony nightstands; Room Service Fabrics in WingHaven let Newton pick fabrics for the curtains, bed and pillows. Hartenbach donated and custom framed two prints; Terry Stratmann of The French Wench Antiques added a tin-framed mirror; Jen Carrico, owner of House and Hedge, made a flower arrangement for the dresser. The amount donated totaled more than $12,000.
In the midst of our work, though, Lena Randle got sicker--although her good spirits and faith never faltered. Now, rather than ensure that the mail gets delivered daily to Ladue, Randle spends her time scooping up her grandchildren--ages 6 to 10. "I get those hugs and kisses, and I get every last one I can grab," she says. "I grab them when they come in the door; I give them another one on the way out."
Step by Step:
1. Newton meets with Lena and John Randle to discuss their wants and needs. Lena wants a 21-inch–high king-size bed. "She wanted something that had some romance without being too girly," Newton says. "When I suggested red walls, she flipped. She said, 'Yes, yes, yes.' Then she asked me, 'Can I really have red walls?' as if she needed permission. I said, 'Of course.'"
2. Newton asks if they could get rid of the double dresser and tall chest. Lena agrees. He explains he would replace it with one unit.
3. Lena explains she wants a computer station in her closet, near her bed.
4. Newton sketched out the remodeled room. "She gave me a big hug and sent me on my way."
5. The first challenge? Fitting the large bed in a relatively small room. "My approach is to drape the area behind the bed and headboard to make the bed the most important design element in the room," Newton says, "and to minimize everything else."
6. Newton works with the Closet Factory on the design of both the wall unit and the computer station in the Randles' bedroom closet.
7. On to the fabrics and "doing something I enjoy doing," Newton says, "adding pattern where there is already pattern." He shops the backroom of Edwin Pepper and the racks of Room Service Fabrics.
8. Lowe's donates the carpet, and with 50 different color choices, Newton picks out a shade of muted green with a touch of blue.
9. Once the pieces were all in place, the painters paint the walls; Lowe's lays the carpet and Newton accessorizes with a mirror from The French Wench, a flower arrangement by Jen Carrico of House and Hedge, lamps he purchased at Lowe's and pillows bought at World Market.
10. Before installation day, Newton says, "I'm looking forward to a room that will make her smile whenever she walks in it or when she wakes up in the morning."
Taking Stock
Ever wonder what you can do to help when a friend or family member gets sick with cancer?
Ina Sachar knows. In 1997, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Four years later, she learned she had advanced ovarian cancer—which came back for a second bout two years later. In June 2004, Sachar underwent surgery for colon cancer.
Currently, she is hard at work on a book detailing what to expect after you’ve been diagnosed—and how to cope. A licensed yoga instructor, she also volunteers as a cancer counselor, shepherding others through the various stages on their road to recovery. She has very defined do’s and don’ts for the afflicted and their loved ones. “Making your home into a sanctuary is necessary for recovery,” Sachar says.
For starters, head to the store and load up on items to stock their shelves and put into their home.
Sachar suggests:
Aloe Vera juice (for nausea after chemo)
Organic juices (in children’s sized portions)
Cranberry juice (unsweetened)
Lemon- or lime-flavored fizzy water
Boost (if weight loss is an issue)
Tapioca pudding, cereal, granola bars, Jell-O, Popsicles—fluids in any form
Oatmeal
Seeds (for example: pumpkin with tamari)
Nuts (cashews, walnuts, almonds)
Cheese sticks
Bananas
Pineapple
Peanut butter (fresh or natural)
Yogurt
Almond butter
Lozenges (sugarless; the mouth can get dry)
In the bath:
Bath pillow
Natural soaps
Bee balm (for cracked skin)
Burt’s Bees foot cream
Eucerin
For the bedroom:
Body pillows
Small microwaveable neck pillows
Electric blanket (that automatically turns off)
A small tray next to the bed for the phone, a list of important telephone numbers and a small calendar that allows tracking medicines taken as well as any upcoming appointments.
Plenty of pictures of loved ones.
Five tips from Bob Newton, ASID, Robert Payne Newton & Associates
1. Color is everything.
2. Remember: The designer is there to work with you rather than impose his or her own will upon you.
3. Don’t forget: This is supposed to be an enjoyable experience.
4. A highly patterned room can camouflage its size.
5. Include playful and unexpected elements in the room. (In this case, the artwork is playful; the portiere is unexpected.)
We’d like to thank again (and again):
Bob Newton, president, Robert Payne Newton & Associates
Closet Factory
Lowe’s
Gannon Painting and Decorating Co.
Room Service Fabrics
Edwin Pepper Interiors
Custom Furniture Works
Rothman Furniture
Crate & Barrel
Hartenbach Design Center
The French Wench Antiques
House and Hedge
Sherwin-Williams, Clayton
