Jeff York is a proponent of positive thinking. In his work and in life, Jeff talks about the importance of having a positive mental attitude and being in a peak emotional state. Out of a devastating cancer diagnosis, Jeff not only found new strength and purpose, but also the connections he needed to bring his message of positivity to a group of people who need it most.

“I don’t think God gives anyone cancer,” Jeff said, “but I think what He does is leads people to Him and to a bigger purpose.”

Jeff understands challenge. As chief sales officer and co-founder of Paycom, a publicly traded company that brings digital transformation to 200 million American workers through technology for HR and payroll, Jeff has seen the peaks and valleys that accompany building a startup company. Through these challenges, he found mental management to be key to his success.

A few years ago, Jeff experienced unusual trouble swallowing. He visited his doctor and received test results that indicated he was a fit, healthy 48-year-old. But an endoscopy his doctor ordered the next week showed differently: Jeff learned he had gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma, a rare type of cancer of the esophagus. Physicians explained it was already at stage IV, indicating it had spread from its original location.

Jeff received treatment in Houston, where he lived for months separated from his family while enduring chemotherapy, radiation and, eventually, successful surgery.  Learning only one small tumor remained, Jeff prepared for a second round of treatments. He stayed positive until 21 new tumors were found two months later.

Jeff called his Dallas doctor again to find the best oncologist in the nation for recurrences of his cancer. After two day’s research, his doctor told Jeff he’d found the perfect oncologist, and he was in Dallas!  Jeff immediately switched medical teams, which brought him home to Dallas and Baylor Scott & White Health. Several months later, through an aggressive treatment plan that included a mix of chemotherapies and a drug called Herceptin (Trastuzumab), Jeff received excellent news from his oncologist:  his cancer was virtually undetectable.

Jeff asked how long he would need infusions of this drug, which he had been receiving every two weeks. The answer was that he would need to be on this medication the rest of his life.

“That’s a long, long time,” Jeff remembered remarking. He wanted so badly to be done with cancer, going to the hospital, and receiving treatments. But through his own internal struggle, he realized the opportunity he had before him: to help change the lives of others with a dose of positivity.

“I started to reconcile these thoughts with the way I got through the whole thing originally: finding purpose in it.  Then I thought, if I’m going to be neck-deep in cancer care with fellow patients the rest of my life, I’m going to do something with it.  I firmly believe that God values relationships more than anything.  I think it’s why we were created – to have relationships with Him and one another,” he said.

Jeff’s next step was to become a credentialed Baylor Scott & White volunteer. His caregivers talk about the positive light Jeff brings to infusion rooms when he is there for treatments. From uplifting even the most downtrodden patients to honoring the passion and purpose of the dedicated oncology physicians and nurses, Jeff shares his mental management techniques and support with others in hopes of inspiring and enabling them as they make their way through the cancer journey. It’s Jeff’s personal form of ministry.

So when Jeff heard about BSWH’s partnership with the American Cancer Society to build a Hope Lodge on the campus of Baylor University Medical Center and the caring environment it would offer, he immediately wanted to be a part of it. He and his wife, Carmen, made a generous gift to help give hope a new home in Dallas.

“You can’t believe the number of people who get cancer and then their lives are in complete financial ruin,” Jeff said.  “You often need to live somewhere else during treatment which can last for long periods of time, and many can’t afford to do that. Hope Lodge is something absolutely critical – we need this.”

Jeff was astounded to think of the number of people who could be positively served by this 50-room facility that is offered free of charge to them. He asked his team of legal and financial advisors to jump on the opportunity quickly to help him find a way to support this mission. The idea of Hope Lodge spoke to him in a way that nothing else had before.

Jeff remarks on his gift with words from his good friend, Tom Kindred, who is in his 90s.  “Tom said, ‘One day, every single worldly possession you own will be owned by someone else. So you better think of what you can do while you’re here that will last.’”

That notion means a lot to Jeff, who wrote it down and repeats it often.  His chance for his personal ministry of helping others to find a new home in Hope Lodge means the world to him.

“It’s a gift,” Jeff said of Hope Lodge. “It’s a monumental move for thousands of people. It’s not about the money; it’s about what it does, and it’s about drawing people together.  It’s about the hero’s journey that all of these patients and caregivers take.”