John's Journal: Community Comes Together To Fight Cancer

Kailee Olson’s Facebook page is filled with happy moments. Photos of Kailee and her husband, Troy, along with their 2-year-old daughter Lowry, who is as cute as a button. Throwback photos of Kailee and her brothers on their birthdays. Photos of her parents and brothers cuddling with Lowry.

And then on Jan. 31, the tone dramatically turned. Kailee, 34, posted the news that she had been diagnosed with colon cancer. The message began with these words: My life has literally been rocked these past couple weeks, and I wanted to let everyone know what I’ve been going through in case they’ve heard or were wondering.

She wrote about the lengthy process of tests, scans, evaluations, genetic counseling -- because she is pregnant with their second child -- biopsies and other scary words.

Later in the same post, she wrote: I have been asked by many ‘what were your symptoms?’ Unfortunately Colon Cancer can show no signs. I started experiencing back pain and abdominal pain after finding out I was pregnant which I was told is ‘normal during pregnancy’, ‘round ligament pain’, and to see a chiropractor and PT. I also had some abdominal cramping and nausea which was also easily brushed off as a pregnancy symptom.

And the final paragraph: Thank you to everyone who’s reached out to me to support. I have a lot to fight for! My family and of course my little Lowry who is quite literally the light of my life and the only thing getting me through these dark, dark days.

Kailee is far from alone in this fight. Before marrying Troy in 2021 she was Kailee McDonald, and yes, she is part of the first family of Minnesota basketball. Her paternal grandfather, the late Bob McDonald of Chisholm fame, won more games than any boys basketball coach in state history. Her father, Mike McDonald, has been coaching boys basketball for 42 years, the last 38 at Cambridge-Isanti. Her brother Rhett is the head boys coach at Duluth East and her brother Kyle holds the same position at Forest Lake.

Kailee is also involved in the game as an assistant coach for the girls team at Duluth East, although she has stepped back from coaching since the diagnosis.

The support has been incredibly strong. When Cambridge-Isanti played at Duluth East in a boys basketball game on Feb. 8, the event was designated as “Full Court Fight For Kailee,” with T-shirts and fundraisers and other good things.

Friday night at Cambridge-Isanti, the Bluejackets hosted Zimmerman in a boys game. It was scheduled as Coaches vs. Cancer Night, which is a common occurrence at sporting events. But this evening was extra special. Kailee is a 2009 graduate of Cambridge-Isanti, and her hometown turned out for her. There was a raffle, a silent auction, a halftime shooting contest and more, with a whole bunch of folks wearing “Full Court Fight For Kailee” T-shirts.

“It was obviously a great turnout,” Kailee said at the end of the evening. “And it was great to see a lot of people that I haven't seen in many years, and obviously a lot of people that have been around for my parents and our family from our childhood. It was nice to all those familiar faces.”

Among the family members on hand to support Kailee was her uncle Joel McDonald, his wife Carrie and their kids Ayden and Abbey. Joel, former star player at Chisholm who stepped down as head coach at Hibbing a few years ago, is a cancer survivor, having dealt with bladder cancer and lung cancer. He remains under the care of the Mayo Clinic, where he goes every six months for checkups. Kailee’s treatments – currently chemotherapy every other week – also are supervised by Mayo.

The silent auction items were impressive. Somebody went home with a basketball autographed by Michael Jordan. A uniform from Henry Abraham, a Cambridge-Isanti grad now playing college basketball at Coastal Carolina, carried Henry’s signature. There was a signed photo of Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards, there were Timberwolves tickets, Frost women’s hockey tickets, certificates for oil changes and massages and meals and golf, there was fishing equipment, grills, haircuts, gift baskets, candles, blankets, books, art, pottery and much more. Raffle tickets sold like hotcakes.

Along with Coaches vs. Cancer Night, it also was Parents Night for the Cambridge-Isanti boys basketball team. Each player in the program, from ninth grade through varsity, was introduced. The players met their parents at half court and shared a hug, then lined up along the sidelines. By the time everyone had been introduced, the parents and kids stood on all four sides of the court, most of the parents wearing “Full Court Fight For Kailee” shirts.

The Cambridge-Isanti boys had played at Zimmerman in mid-January, losing to the Thunder 90-65 in a Mississippi 8 Conference game. The C-I Bluejackets were dealing with injuries at that point in the season, but they were the picture of health in the rematch. They raced to a 45-25 halftime lead and won 86-67. Emerson Droubie led the Bluejackets with 29 points and Jameson Epple had 20.

The entire evening was electric and halftime was a hoot. Anybody wanting to shoot a three-point shot donated a couple of dollars and fired away. The successful bombers grabbed their prizes off a table … a two-liter jug of soda pop, a big bag of chips and a Godzilla-sized candy bar. PA announcer Jason Abraham (Henry’s dad) kept up the rapid chatter, encouraging more folks to come to the court and shoot, screaming congratulations to the hot hands and making sure everyone had a big ball of fun. Kailee’s mom, Dayla McDonald, stood behind one of the baskets, shooting video on her phone and smiling broadly as “The Final Countdown” played on the sound system.

When the teams returned to the court to loosen up for the second half, ABBA’s “Dancing Queen” filled the gym, followed by Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train.” Ozzy’s fine number includes these lyrics: “Maybe it's not too late To learn how to love And forget how to hate.” No kidding.

As the final minute of the game ticked down, the Cambridge-Isanti student section – full of enthusiasm and vinegar – chanted “WE LOVE KAILEE! (clap clap clapclapclap).” All evening, the videoboard in the gym displayed messages of support for Kailee along with family photos.

Following the Bluejackets’ victory, Mike McDonald received handshakes and hugs from a multitude of friends. He thanked each and every one of them for coming to the game. “Heartwarming” doesn’t begin to describe the scene.

“As a coach, sometimes you feel quite isolated,” he said. “There are times, and even for a coach's wife, when you feel isolated. But tonight showed that we have a lot of friends, a lot of friends who are thinking about Kailee and praying for Kailee and supporting Kailee in her fight.

“Things have been different for me since January. My players know they're playing for not only me, but they're playing for her, too. They know that's a big part of what’s on my mind. And so with that, it's been different. Before, you could just concentrate on basketball. Basketball is still a big part of it but sometimes it has to be secondary.”

The boys basketball coaching staff in nearby Princeton – which did not have a game Friday -- brought a donation for Kailee, funds that were collected during a recent game in Princeton.

“It’s actually amazing,” Dayla McDonald said. “We are hearing from people we haven’t heard from in years. And it’s not only family, it’s our village we have here. It’s Cambridge and Duluth; I taught in Braham for 35 years and I’m hearing from people in Braham, too.”

“The village is wide,” Mike said. “And it's more than a village. It felt like a metropolis tonight with all the support for Kailee.”

As the gym cleared out, the extended families of Kailee and Troy gathered for photos. Little Lowry chased grown-up Abby across the court, with giggles aplenty and smiles everywhere.

Kailee said she was feeling pretty good, probably because this was an “off week” for chemo. “I’ve had more energy, which has been nice,” she said.

As for her diagnosis, she said, “I wouldn't wish it upon my worst enemy. But it’s just something that we kind of need to handle and can't avoid. It’s our reality now, and there has been tons of support.”

“It's tough. It hurts,” Troy said. “But Kailee's a fighter and if there's anybody up for the challenge, it’s her. We just take it day by day, hour by hour, and try and live our best lives and kind of go from there.”

--T-shirts to support Kailee can be ordered here: https://fightforkailee2025.itemorder.com/shop/home/

--A Go Fund Me site has been established to support Kailee: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-kailees-fight-against-colon-cancer 

—See more photos on the MSHSL Facebook page.

--MSHSL staff member John Millea has been the leading voice of Minnesota high school activities for decades. Follow him on Bluesky at johnmilleamn and listen to "Preps Today with John Millea” wherever you get podcasts. Contact John at [email protected] or [email protected]