Maria Fernandez led a busy life. She had two jobs, was a mother to a 14-year-old daughter, a wife to a loving husband and a student. She worked six days a week, which only allowed her one day a week for herself and her family. So when Maria received her breast cancer diagnosis, the world as she knew it, came to a halt. As a natural born provider and extrovert, Maria was not afraid of the battle that she had ahead of her. However, she was afraid of how her daughter - a fierce introvert who loved animals, but not comfortable with people - would react to the news. “I didn’t want her to carry that burden,” recalled Maria. “So I just kept it between my husband and I.” When Maria and her husband could no longer shelter her from the reality of her diagnosis, Maria found herself surprised by her daughter’s reaction. Her daughter became her main support. “She was that friend that I needed, and she was with me at all of my doctors’ appointments and treatments, and she would just lay next to me,” recalled Maria. “I think that was just enough. Just her being there with me.” In her daughter, she found the strength and love that she didn’t know she needed to keep fighting. Together, they both learned that “we are stronger than we think.”