Battle with Cancer Sharpens Business Perspective
By Erik Olson
Charlie Weaver's business is written on his vehicle. He says he spends more time on the road than in his and his wife Linda's office on Allen Street in Kelso. Bill Wagner / The Daily News
Linda and Charlie Weaver started their first real estate franchise the same month they got the worst news of their lives.
It was last May, and the Kalama couple had just returned from a training seminar at the headquarters of Assist 2 Sell in Reno. Charlie had an MRI before they left to check a lump in his hip. The news was not good.
Charlie, 54, had stage 4 lung cancer, the worst kind. He needed surgery, he needed chemotherapy and he needed to prepare to fight.
The doctor told him he likely had only nine months left, but the couple didn't give up. Linda even booked a weeklong cruise in Hawaii to take place nine months later as an incentive for her husband to get better.
The nine months is up, Charlie is cancer-free, and their Assist 2 Sell franchise is open for business in Kelso.
But not this week - because the Weavers are exploring Hawaii.
"Saturday it's been nine months, and we're headed on that cruise," Linda said.
"Can't wait. Can't wait! I'm so jazzed," Charlie added, pumping his fist.
Charlie left the telecom industry after 26 years and searched for a new career. He got his real estate license in 2001, and his wife followed suit in 2004.
The cancer battle has given them a different perspective on running their business, they said. With the economy slowing nationwide, people are looking to save money, Charlie said.
The Weavers' goal is to help them do that while buying a home, even if it means less profit for them.
"We can now relate very closely to what a lot of folks are going through," Charlie said.
Charlie is quick to laugh and smile, and he said surviving cancer has made him approach each day with a sunnier attitude.
"Your criteria for having a good day goes way down," Charlie said.
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