Amy Rae Romsey
December 3rd, 1978 – February 9th, 2026
“Clear Eyes. Full Hearts. Can’t Lose.” These six words were first shared during the initial episode of one of Amy’s most favorite shows, Friday Night Lights, but also became phrase that our kids saw every day as they went down the basement to play when they were younger. Little did we know way back in 2007 that these words would also accurately represent how Amy lived her life when faced with the most unthinkable circumstances.
Amy was diagnosed with Stage IV appendix cancer in August 2021 at 42 years old. Her specific cancer was Goblet Cell adenocarcinoma which only 1 person in 1 million are diagnosed with annually. She experienced initial symptoms early that year that started mild in nature and were thought to be a result of uterine fibroids. Over the course of the next 6 months, routine follow-ups continued but no blood tests, tumor markers, or imaging studies were able to detect the cancer until a diagnostic laparoscopy was done in August. After being diagnosed, she braved a very long 4 ½ years full of 42 rounds of chemotherapy, 2 cytoreductive surgeries, HIPEC (Heated Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy) three times, numerous other procedures, many disappointing doctor’s visits, and a long list of brutal complications. There is no doubt that she endured through this time because of her incredible spirit, strength, willpower, and desire to live life as a mom and wife.
Amy graduated from the University of Iowa as a Dean’s List student while managing to find a seat at every bar she ever walked into. Upon graduation, she worked in advertising before deciding to fully focus on raising her family.
We met during our first semester of college and quickly became good friends. It didn’t take us long to become great friends. In February of 1999 we decided that we wanted to try becoming more than friends and the rest became our history together. We were married in August 2003 and often told each other how lucky we were to have gotten to marry our best friend.
Our life together was filled with the best family, countless friends, consistent laughs, and lots of fun. She was the perfect partner. She was a devoted wife and made me a better person, full stop. AND, she was the best Mom to our four boys. Amy said that she felt like she was put on this world to be a “boy mom” and while she excelled at many things in life, nothing was more important to her than the young men that we were raising.
To her “handsome fellas,” she was the greatest mom ever – she hung the moon. In her younger years, Amy was a fantastic athlete so a favorite way to get to spend time with them was watching our boys compete. She never missed a game, either in person or via livestream as with four boys we couldn’t be in more than one place at a time. She was a fun mom that never missed a moment to create a memory, even if it was just waking up to go to school. She also never hesitated to tell our boys what they needed to hear whether those were warm, consoling words or informing them of a harsh reality. She created the roadmap for our family’s life and ensured that we knew how much we were capable of. She made sure our house was always full of love, music, fun, food, laughter, and people – lots of people.
Beyond being the best wife and mom, Amy also was a daughter, sister, Aunt, and friend. She relished each of these titles and valued spending time with her people.
Amy was consistent in how she showed up in life: generous, creative, thoughtful, fun-loving, caring, and loved seeing everyone together. Entertaining in our home and backyard was constant for our family and friends. She spent most of her time focusing on others, but when she did take time for herself, she enjoyed reading a great book, getting in a tough workout while music blared, painting watercolors, and basking in the sun wherever and whenever possible. Her creativity left many in awe, whether it was her style, ability to decorate, writing, finding a great piece of art, or her love of music – these were always on display.
Amy was passionate about taking action and creating impact in all aspects of life. Below is something she wrote to friends and family after a doctor’s appointment:
“He encouraged me to do the research, but what this cancer needs is advocacy and research support. The rare cancers like appendix cancer just don’t get the funding they need to make strides in detection, treatment plans, and research. So get ready guys…I may be dusting off my WGN/Cubbies ad sales experience and coming out of retirement to begin advocating and fundraising for support groups and $$$$ for this cancer.”
It is our hope that funding research for appendix cancer, especially as it becomes more and more prevalent for middle-aged women, that early detection can become common and cancer treatments become more specialized. Currently, there is no cure for her type of cancer. Goblet cell adenocarcinoma is undetectable through current imaging modalities making treatment and management incredibly difficult. The mental and physical anguish of the path that Amy was forced down was exhausting. Please consider supporting this little-known and underfunded cause now and in the future to improve care and treatment so others do not suffer the way Amy did. Our ambitious goal is to raise enough money to establish an additional ACPMP research grant specifically in Amy’s name.
With Love and Gratitude,
The Romsey Family, Bob & Debbie Somerville, the Thulin family,
and Amy’s many friends
About the Appendix Cancer PMP Research Foundation
The Appendix Cancer PMP Research Foundation is a volunteer-led IRS-designated 501(c)3 charitable organization. The Foundation was created in 2008 by a community of individuals affected by Appendix Cancer and Pseudomyxoma Peritonei.
Our core mission is to:
- Fund and support research to discover new treatments for appendix cancer with the hope of one day finding a cure.
-Fund and support educational programs for health care professionals and patients/caregivers & families to keep pace with the evolving science
-Increase awareness about this rare cancer.
All of our funding comes from fundraisers like this one created by patients, family, friends, and family foundations in honor or memory of loved ones.