Rene Green may not have been born in the Texarkana area, but she has certainly planted her roots here.
Originally a California girl, Rene still remembers making that drive with her family to Valliant, Oklahoma, when she was just 11 years old. She lived there about two years before moving to Foreman, Arkansas.
Rene married her first husband, James - a truck driver - in 1979. In 1985, James was hauling a load of steel when he took a curve and his load shifted. He was only 25 years old at the time of his death. Rene was devastated.
"I felt lost and afraid, but had the support of my parents," she said. She resolved to stay strong for her two children, Jeromy and Jennifer.
Rene relocated to De Queen, Arkansas, in 1989. By this time, her brood had grown to five. Two years later, she moved to Hooks, Texas, where she raised her children into adulthood.
Rene, like most mothers, holds many memories of her children. Brody was born at home and weighed 11 pounds and 6 ounces, for example.
"When Michael was born, he was only 2 pounds and 14.5 ounces. Then when he was 11 years old, he had a dirt bike accident and split his spleen in half," Rene said. "He had to have emergency surgery."
She also remembers in 2008 when Shawna, her youngest, had an accident where her car went under an 18 wheeler. She somehow survived.
Rene credits her faith and her children for getting her through those troubled times.
But her faith would be further tested.
In 2007, Rene received a phone call regarding Brody.
"He was with some friends and they were burning stuff in a burn barrel," she said. The fire spread to a nearby gas canister that caught on fire and exploded.
"He was in the hospital for 29 days," Rene continued. "The doctors only gave Brody a 1% chance of survival."
Rene and her other four children rushed to Little Rock to be with Brody.
"We all sat in the conference room while the doctors told us that they couldn't do anything more for Brody," Rene said. "All of my kids broke down crying and screaming 'NO'"
Her son died of his injuries. He was 20.
Rene pressed on. She held onto her faith and her family for support.
Yet, three years later, she had more devastating news.
In September 2010, she received another phone call. This time it was Jeromy. He was in a horrific car accident. He suffered a traumatic brain injury and a broken jaw.
"I couldn't believe it. I drove as fast as I could to the hospital.
"I, along with my other children and longtime friend Kevin Brown, got there just in time to see him before they took him back for surgery." When Jeromy finally left the hospital, he was placed in a nursing home. Two years later, he was released to an inpatient rehabilitation hospital.
When he finally came home, Rene had to get a hospital bed, a wheelchair and a van to transport him. She also had her home remodeled to accommodate his medical needs.
"We got a ramp from the Texas Ramp Project and had the doorways widened to fit his wheelchair," she said. "I tell Jeromy all the time that his situation could be worse, and I am so glad that he is alive."
Rene said it has taken a great deal of therapy to get him where he is at today.
"He cannot walk but he can stand on one leg now," she said. "He can also feed himself and speak a few words. He is really doing so great."
In 2014, Rene noticed some pain in the roof of her mouth. She had false upper teeth and thought they might be rubbing. A biopsy was done by a Shreveport dentist. A month later, she was diagnosed with melanoma of the upper palette.
Rene's sister, Yvonne, and daughters Jennifer and Shawna were there when he gave her the news.
"I remember when he told us it was cancer. Both my sister and daughters cried for me. I didn't cry and I don't know why," Rene remembered. "I just looked at him and said 'OK. What is next?'"
That same year, Rene had a maxillectomy, which is removal of all or part of the maxilla bone. That was the first of many surgeries, from bone grafts to skin grafts, as well as feeding tube placement, its removal and more.
"The first surgery didn't work like they wanted it to," she said. "So, I had a lot of surgeries that followed; all for my mouth."
When she had her first major surgery, her daughters, Jennifer and Shawna, and sister Yvonne, came to the hospital and gave her an old-fashioned bed bath. "They even washed and braided my hair," Rene said. "They painted my fingernails and toenails."
Rene not only had support from her children and family, but also from her friends. She continued to thank God and count her blessings for all the amazing people who were on this journey with her.
But the battle was far from over. She had six weeks of radiation and two types of chemotherapy to complete.
"Radiation was the worst," Rene said. "It focused directly on my mouth and it was just awful."
Rene continued to find reasons to be grateful.
"I thank God that the chemotherapy I took did not make my hair fall out," she said.
She continued to stay positive.
"I had to be strong for my kids. I had to be strong for Jeromy," Rene said. "I had to believe that God had a reason for all that I have been through."
She continues to live life to the fullest, though her philosophy has changed a bit.
"I used to tell people 'Things happen for a reason,''' she said. "I don't know what changed my mind, but after everything that I have been through, I tell people this: 'It is all part of God's plan.'"
For all she has been through, Rene is still positive and grateful. To those dealing with affliction and loss she offers this advice.
"Don't give up hope. There is always hope," she said. "You may not get what you planned, but you will get what God planned. It is hard to believe sometimes, but something good comes from everything. Sometimes it is just hard to see."