LIVERMORE -- When her 13-year-old daughter, Korrine, came home sick

after a water polo tournament one Sunday back in December 2007,

Dana Croghan thought it was the stomach flu. But over the next couple

days Korrine's symptoms worsened, and, despite the doctor's assurances,

Dana said her maternal alarm began going off. On Thursday of that week,

just five days before Christmas, she broughtKorrine -- then

an avid swimmer, water polo player and honor roll student at

Mendenhall Middle School-- to the emergency room.A few hours later,

Dana and Korrine's father, Matt, received the news that made their hearts

fall through the floor: Korrine had stage four cancer. Her

diagnosis was mixed germ cell choriocarcinoma, a rare and

aggressive disease of the womb that affects about 200 teenage girls each

year. The cancer already had spread to her liver and lungs, said Dana,

recalling how surgeons removed a tumor the size of a cantaloupe from her

daughter's ovary. The next ten-and-a-half months were a blur of extended

hospital stays and chemotherapy treatments. Korrine suffered numerous

complications. Her liver began bleeding, and the cancer medication

ravaged her body, necessitating multiple blood transfusions. The community

rallied,hosting a massive blood drive to collect the more than 80 units of

rare A-negative blood Korrine needed to stay alive. Every time her daughter

received a transfusion, her color improved, she was reinvigorated and

allowed to spend more quality time with the people she loved, Dana said.

Throughout the ordeal, the eighth-grader never lost her enthusiasm for life,

or the kind spirit that had always set her apart and made

her seem older than her years, family and friends say. "She never,

ever complained.She always had a smile on her face ... She was the type

of girl who would greet you with a wide smile and look deep into your eyes

and truly want to know how you were doing." Dana said. "She said she felt

her suffering was for God's glory and to help other people." Korrine, who

would have been a senior at Granada High School this year,

succumbed to cancer at her home on Oct. 27, 2008. Her legacy, however,

has lived on. A non-profit called "Team KC" raises funds for pediatric

cancer patients, hosts an annual swimathon and provides a yearly

scholarship for high school seniors. In addition, two

blood drives are held in January and June in Livermore every year

in Korrine's memory.

Organizers of an upcoming "dual drive" on June 17 say they hope

it will be one of the largest Livermore has ever had. This is the first time

Team KC is pairing with the bi-monthly Livermore Community blood drive

to raise donations and awareness.

Team KC's drive, hosted by Marcel Orthodontics, is at 2084 4th St.;

the Livermore Community blood drive is at Asbury United Methodist Church,

4743 East Ave.

Thomas Petty, a Livermore Internet consultant who has been

sponsoring the community drives since 2002, said his stepdaughters,

both of whom attended Livermore High School, remember Korrine.

"It was sad news when Korrine passed away, " Petty said. "I think people,

they just don't understand the importance of giving blood."

Donors can sign up at www.redcrossblood.org, and use use either

"TeamKC" or "Asbury925" as the sponsor code. For more information on the

drives, call the Red Cross at 800-REDCROSS (733-2766).

Go to korrinecroghan.blogspot.com

to learn more about Team KC.

Contact Jeanine Benca at 925-847-2125.