83-year-old writes two books after cancer diagnosis Hunter Stedman, August 21, 2024 REIDSVILLE — In September of 2023, Elwood Shreve, 83, was told by two surgeons that his prostate cancer was so bad that he would not make it until Thanksgiving of last year. Thanksgiving 2024 is not that far away, and Shreve is still going strong. In fact, the energetic Shreve has written two books since his diagnosis, one, “Unseen,” which was published earlier this year, and another, “Love Chose Me,” that should be available the end of this month. Shreve admits that there was a brief time, though, when his outlook on life faltered. The picture of good health through August of last year, he made five trips to the emergency room the next month and had 3 surgeries in the span of six days. The diagnosis of advanced prostate cancer hit hard, especially when it was recommended that he begin hospice care. “I felt it would only be a few weeks before I died,” Shreve said. “I was ready to give up at that point.” People are also reading… That was before Carol Vanderwerf, a registered nurse with ANCORA Compassionate Care, made a visit to his home in October to begin hospice care. “I had to make him see God was not done with him yet,” she said of the man she now affectionately calls ‘Papa.’ “I try to give my patients hope.” Her uplifting words of compassion sparked something in Shreve. “She told me that God is the only one who knows when I’m going to pass, and he may not be through with me,” he said. Shortly after taking her words to heart and undergoing an attitude overhaul, Shreve said he started to get better “by leaps and bounds.” Three months later, he told his daughter and son they no longer needed to take turns staying with him at night. “Faith has always been a big part of my life,” he said. “I know the Lord has always been with me.” When Vanderwerf asked him what he still wanted to do or accomplish, Shreve answered that he would love to write a book, and she responded, “Well then, do it.” Shreve has always enjoyed writing poems, so much so that a few years ago, he put together a little compilation of his writing for his family. He had never tried his hand at writing a book, though, until now. A self-described lover of adventure, Shreve said the plot for his first book, “Unseen,” just came to him one day. A fictional piece, his book tells the story of an actress who decides to use her acting talents to help rob banks. His son helped him get the book published, and Shreve said it is now available on Amazon, eBay and in some bookstores, as well as at LULU.Com/Bookstore. “I enjoyed the process so much that I decided to do it again,” Shreve said of writing his second book. “I did it for pleasure and don’t really care how well my books sell.” Fictional as well, “Love Chose Me” tells the story from a Christian perspective of a young man’s search for the meaning of love. “I put a lot into the second one from my heart,” Shreve said of his second book. “It has a little mystery in it, too.” “Love Chose Me” is set to be published the end of this month. “My hope is that my first book stirs imaginations and challenges the reader, and that the second one turns a lot of people to the Lord and to read the Bible,” Shreve said. Originally, Shreve said he was done with writing after publishing two books, but now he is not so sure. “Now, an idea for a mystery has come to me,” he said with a chuckle. “I have a crazy mind I think, as many of my jobs took me out of state, and I met so many people.” After working for years as sales reps for companies such as Pepsi and Cheese-It, Shreve retired early from the News & Record, where he worked training paper carriers. Born in Bethany, Shreve moved to Reidsville with his family when he was 9 years old and has lived in Reidsville ever since. His first wife, Carol, passed away after the couple had been married 30 years, and his second wife, Jewell, to whom he was also married for 30 years, passed away in 2020. Shreve has four children (plus a fifth who passed away), eight grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. A member of Reidsville Baptist Church, Shreve loves to read his Bible daily, and he says he continues to feel better each day. “I’ve never taken a pain pill for my cancer,” he said. “The only thing I’ve taken since my diagnosis was Tylenol for a root canal.” His goal, aside from writing, is to drive to Shreveport, La., to visit the town he says one of his ancestors designed. He also walks a half a mile every other day and does resistant exercises, which he said he learned as a teenager. Vanderwerf, who visits Shreve weekly, remains in awe of her patient. “He has my heart,” she said. “He has a lot of determination.” She is also very proud of his achievements as a now published author. “He still has a lot of stories to tell,” Vanderwerf said. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! 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