Community rallies for veteran Vanessa Ruiz battling cancer
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- A local veteran battling terminal breast cancer was met with an outpouring of love Monday evening, as the Borderland community showed up for a special drive-by parade in her honor.
Vanessa Ruiz, a retired Army drill sergeant in her early 40s, is in hospice care after a long battle with triple-negative breast cancer. Her family had asked the community to help lift her spirits—and the Borderland delivered.
The parade kicked off just before 5 p.m. near Joey Barraza and Vino Memorial Park in northeast El Paso. Hundreds of vehicles, from classic cars to motorcycles, roared down Thatcher Pond Lane, many decorated with signs, ribbons, and flags.
Ruiz smiled, laughed, and at times, was brought to tears. Near the end of the parade, the crowd gathered in prayer. When Ruiz said, “I want to scream,” supporters encouraged her to do so—and she did.
Ruiz told ABC-7 she remains in high spirits and is determined to keep fighting. She said the positivity shown by the community gave her the strength she needed to keep going.
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) - The family of a retired drill sergeant hosted a drive-by parade to help brighten her day today.
Vanessa Ruiz joined the United States Army back in 2009 as a combat medic and practicing nurse specialist. She rose through the ranks until she achieved her dream post, drill sergeant.
In 2022 while serving as a drill sergeant, she was given the diagnosis everyone fears... cancer. Ruiz was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer, an aggressive and invasive form of the disease that accounts for 10-to-15 percent of all breast cancer diagnoses.
This cancer is common in women younger than 40 or who have the Brac-1 mutation and tends to spread faster. It also has the fewest treatment options which accounts for its poor prognosis.
"I don't want to focus on the negative. There's been a lot of positive, my baby right here," Ruiz said as she hugged her daughter. "Everybody is is always trying to find the silver lighting and everything, despite of how hard it was get, because it's you have to move forward."
Ruiz is in hospice now and her family planned the parade to bring her some joy and create a good memory. Ruiz was always interested in motorcycles and classic cars, they say.
