Watch Kindred

When my friend Kindra was diagnosed with cervical cancer I knew I wanted to do something. I knew her husband Mark since I was ten, and she really was one of the greatest people I've ever known. Really I know that people say that all the time about people who get cancer, but really she was. Kindra worked as a bi-lingual social worker in Chicago. For a white girl who grew up outside Portland, that's impressive. Her main goal was to help kids in these neighborhoods who couldn't choose to live the life they were in. Her job was tough, but she was good at it. When she was diagnosed with cancer in April of 2008 she started a blog. Initially to keep her friends and family in the loop on what she was going through, then it became more. Kindra had a way of writing that was smart, conversational and funny. As you read her words you understood what she was going through. The initial plan after the diagnosis was that she would receive chemo, then radiation, and then consider a hysterectomy if the first two weren't successful. Well, the weeks seemed like days, in July the hysterectomy became inevitable. By October Kindra found out the cancer had spread like wildfire. She didn't last long after that. When she died I knew that I wanted to do something, and that's what this film is about. It's not only about remembering her, and also it's a roadmap for understanding how to deal with a disease like cancer. It really is terrible, but it's something that you don't go through alone. Your friends and family suffer as well. Right around the time she died I had just finished my first doc 'Under The Ice;, and I chose this a my second piece. It in a way is to remember a great person, and in another way to let women who are suffering from cervical cancer to know, they are not alone. It's a documentary that is close to my heart, which I'm very proud of.

Kindred is a documentary with a runtime of 44 minutes.