Life''s Lemons Life On occasion, one has the privilege of mee�ng a bright shining star, a lovely human soul with so much light, joy and an infec�ous laugh to go with it. What was going to be a brief woman woman--owned business ar�cle, turned into something quite different when I had the chance to meet Keneithia “Keke” White. Last November, Keke lost her mom, and a�er struggling through that darkness, she needed a radical change. She applied to be a flight a�endant and got the job! Then COVID-19 hit. Keke didn’t really know what to do during the delay, so she started ordering bou�que items. “I have an eye for things that are simple and different. I’ve always go�en compliments on my clothes that are cute and sassy,” she said. “When I had cancer, I lost my hair, and so I really got into the hair.” Suddenly, people were asking her to buy extra items they could purchase from her, and “it just snowballed into something amazing.” Not only is Keneithia a single mom with two beau�ful kids, but
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she is also a three-�me, stage 4 breast cancer survivor. Originally diagnosed in 2013 when she was just 33 years old, the doctors found that her stage 4 breast cancer had metastasized, causing twenty tumors on her liver. Keke’s first thought was, “I have no room for failure. I have to be here for my kids, my mom and my dad.”
I feel like when life gives you lemons, lemons, you make lemonade vodka shots ! Keneithia beat it the first �me, then again a second �me, and again a third �me. So what got her through it? Her contagious and exuberant posi�ve a�tude. “I’m just so thankful for life, and I feel like when life gives you lemons, you make lemonade vodka shots! Regardless of whether you have someone to hold your hand, you go�a get through it. It’s yours to go through,” says Keke. She adds that her kids and parents helped her win this fight. “It could always be worse. When you go through things in life, the changes they make become your new way of life without even realizing it. And I’ve been rock’n and rollin ever since.” “I became an advocate when I got sick and made it my mission to share everything about my journey. My story has been highlighted a lot. I’ve been on
TV, radio and interviewed for newspaper ar�cles. I want to bring awareness to breast cancer and to share hope with humor!” October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month As Keke tells it, she has learned to roll with the punches and take every twist and turn that life gives her as a unique opportunity. More and more people started ordering the special luxury items she provided at affordable prices. In May, she decided to take this li�le business to the next level and Lavish A. Lux was born. So what about the flight a�endant job? “I haven’t decided about that yet. I guess it depends on how well Lavish A. Lux does before I’m scheduled for training. But I’m open to anything,” explains Keke. We have no doubt that whatver Keke chooses, her future is bright! Wri en by Christine Walker
