TOLEDO, Ohio — "I had a huge crush on her freshman year of high school, but she was unavailable," Daniel Forney said.
As fate would have it, he and Megan Orzechowski would find their way back to each other in college. Soulmates.
"I planned on proposing to her in the fall, but that was quickly sped up," Daniel said. Megan was diagnosed with breast cancer for a second time in her young life.
"She was diagnosed with cancer the same week the lockdowns started in 2020," Daniel said. "She was in the clear the following year and then this past summer it came back and it spread aggressively."
At Over the Edge for Victory in August of 2021, WTOL 11 interviewed Megan after she safely landed on the ground. "I was diagnosed with stage three Triple Negative breast cancer which is considered one of the most aggressive breast cancers because there aren't that many treatment options out there. I started treatment during COVID," Megan said.
In going Over the Edge, Megan raised money for The Victory Center, which provides a variety of free services to local cancer patients.
"She always felt like you know, 'I'm 24, 25 I'm going through this,'" Daniel said. "She felt so alone while other people were going on and getting masters degrees and other things and she felt stuck and like her body was betraying her and the Victory Center was able to connect with her in a way that normal doctors can't. They would love to."
Megan was set to go over the edge again in September of 2022, a few weeks after she and Daniel were set to be married.
"We planned the wedding for Aug. 20. There was a rapid decline from the radiation and the spread," Daniel said. "So on Aug. 7, we said it to each other. That's what I consider our wedding. Unfortunately we never got a real wedding."
The couple would be married 30 hours before the 25-year-old teacher would die. Now, in her honor Daniel will be rappelling on September 8th, along with Megan's brother and two of her best friends.
"It's scary, but I'll be thinking of her the whole time. She loved it," Daniel said. "She was terrified of doing it but she did it and it's the best thing she's ever done, she said."
In 2021, Megan said, "Before cancer, this was something I would never have done. I'm terrified of heights." It's a message to live life to its fullest, while supporting worthwhile causes.
Daniel has raised just about $5,000 for the Victory Center in Megan's name. For details on how to donate, click here.
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