BELLE — For Belle native Belinda Branson, faith was her anchor, family was her foundation, service to others fueled her spirit and fear was never part of her vocabulary, according to her daughter Amber Hendrix.

“She was a very kind and compassionate lady,” she said. “She would do pretty much anything for anybody. She always wanted to make things better — whether it was at home, at church, or in the community.”

Branson was known for her dedication to her family, her love of sewing and her commitment to her town.

“Somebody once told me she was the Martha Stewart of the Midwest,” Hendrix said. “She loved to make things beautiful — quilts, decorations, gifts — and every grandchild got a handmade quilt that matched their personality.”

But behind the warmth of her homemaking was a fierce determination, one that would define her fight against cancer.

Branson came from a family where breast cancer was all too familiar.

“Her mom had breast cancer, all three of her sisters had it, and her brother had prostate cancer,” Hendrix said.

One of her sisters lost the fight against cancer, after beating it twice.

“She had it three different times, and during the third time, she said, ‘enough’s enough. I’m not fighting this one,’” said Hendrix.

Because of that history, Branson stayed vigilant about screenings and mammograms. During one of those routine checks, doctors discovered a small tumor, about the size of a pencil eraser, Hendrix recalled. It was stage one breast cancer.

Even though doctors said she could likely treat it with radiation or minimal chemotherapy. Branson chose a double mastectomy.

The most recent cancer diagnosis came in August 2024, and Branson shared the news with her family over Labor Day weekend. By Sept. 17, 2024, she had a double mastectomy.

“She didn’t want to take any chances,” Hendrix said.

The surgery wasn’t easy. Branson’s recovery was complicated by an allergic reaction to one of the antiseptic washes used during her procedure.

“It was like she had poison ivy on her incisions,” Hendrix said. “Her body had an allergic reaction that made healing extremely painful.”

Even with the setbacks, Branson faced recovery with courage. By spring of the following year, she was healing, hopeful and celebrating her progress. Her bloodwork came back clear that spring — she was cancer free.

Just one month later, everything changed.

“By May of 2024, she had stage four pancreatic cancer,” Hendrix said. “It was that fast. Her bloodwork had been fine in April, no sign of anything, and then by the next month, it had spread to her pancreas and liver.”

The news devastated the family, but Branson’s faith never wavered.

“She and my dad talked about it,” Hendrix said. “They would ask, ‘Why us?’ and then they’d say, ‘Why not us?’ They believed God would heal her — it was just a matter of which side of Heaven it would happen on.”

Hendrix said her mother went through chemotherapy, but it became clear the treatments weren’t helping.

“Everything grew,” she said. “We had to fight with Medicaid just to get radiation covered because of her prognosis. They didn’t want to spend the money.”

Hendrix became her mother’s advocate, calling doctors, filing appeals and pushing for answers.

“I don’t know how people who don’t have someone to advocate for them do it,” she said. “That’s one thing I learned — you have to ask questions, you have to fight for care and you have to be persistent. Thankfully, I had the ability to, for lack of better terms, be their bulldog. And I did. I made a lot of phone calls to a lot of doctors.”

As the disease progressed, Branson began to lose her clarity and strength.

“She really struggled with her mental clarity after we had one specific round of chemo, and after that, she just didn’t recover from it,” Hendrix recalled. “In her last month, she just wasn’t herself. It was really a lot like having somebody with Alzheimer’s. Just the mental clarity was gone.”

Branson’s faith carried her until the very end. In November 2024, on the drive home after one of her treatments, Hendrix asked her mother a question no daughter ever wants to ask: Are you afraid to die?

“Absolutely not,” Branson told her.

“That gave all of us peace,” Hendrix said. “It hurts to lose your rock, but knowing she wasn’t afraid and that she was ready — that gave us comfort.”

Branson passed away on Dec. 2, 2024, at the age of 73. Her husband, Delmar Branson, whom she married in 1969, was by her side and held her hand until the end.

“My dad walked her into Heaven,” Hendrix said. “And really, what more can you ask for when you get married than someone who will do that for you?”

Branson was not only a fighter in her personal life but a voice for her community.

“She wasn’t afraid to stand up for what she believed was right,” Hendrix said. “She spoke up at city meetings, wrote editorials — she was fearless. Some people might have called her pushy, but she just wanted what was best for Belle.”

That same spirit carried into her advocacy for breast cancer awareness.

“Once she was diagnosed, she became passionate about spreading awareness,” Hendrix said. “She loved her pink shirts, and she was proud to wear them. She wanted women to know how important screenings are.”

Hendrix said her mother’s story changed the way she approaches her own health.

“My sister and I both know it’s not if we’ll face it — it’s when,” she said. “I have a mammogram and an MRI each year, six months apart, because early detection is everything. It’s not about living in fear. It’s about being proactive.”

For Hendrix, her mother’s legacy lives on in laughter, in faith and in small reminders — like the quilts Branson stitched with loving care or the campfires Hendrix still struggles to light without her.

“We always joked that Mom could start a fire with a single match,” she said. “I tried this weekend with half a bottle of lighter fluid and still couldn’t do it. I texted my dad and said, ‘I really could have used Mom tonight.’”

Branson’s story is one of courage, compassion and conviction — a reminder that while cancer can take a life, it cannot take a person’s spirit.

“She was special,” Hendrix said. “She was passionate and committed and loved her community. She faced every battle — even the hardest one — without fear.”