Legacy Lane Project: Passport to Possibility
The Survivorship Story of Doug
There’s never good news at 7:45 AM. But that morning call was the first stamp in what would become the most meaningful journey of Doug Smith’s life, a journey not measured in miles but in milestones.
It began, as most great journeys do, with intuition and insistence. Doug, 66 years old, a former smoker and lifelong traveler, pushed for an x-ray during a routine physical. It wasn’t standard. It wasn’t expected. But something in him knew to ask. That insistence revealed a mass in his lung, unexpected, uninvited, and undeniably life-altering.
Doug’s diagnosis was non-small cell lung cancer, Stage 2B. A frightening itinerary lay ahead: scans, biopsies, consultations, infusions, and surgery. But cancer, like travel, teaches you to prepare for detours, delays, and the courage to keep moving anyway.
He’d been here before, in a different way. As caregiver to his beloved wife Patricia during her own cancer battle, he had navigated the harrowing landscape of loss. That journey left emotional scar tissue but also deepened his empathy and resolve. He wasn’t new to the terrain, but this time, it was his passport being stamped.
Doug chose to fight. With his partner Laura, a seasoned oncology professional and unfailing compass, by his side; with friends like Alex and Jennifer supporting his every step; and with a medical team whose expertise became his map, he forged ahead. Chemo first. Then surgery. Then immunotherapy. Each leg of the journey had its own turbulence - fatigue, tinnitus, and thyroid battles - but Doug pressed on.
There were beautiful destinations along the way. He celebrated shrinking tumors and clean scans. He found moments of joy on cruise ships and in the wild serenity of Florida’s state parks. He and Laura traveled to their 50th U.S. state - North Dakota - and were welcomed by strangers who didn’t know they were embracing a survivor. The world felt wide again.
This wasn’t Doug’s first global adventure. After his wife’s passing, he’d circled the globe solo on a 96-day odyssey, seeking solace and rediscovery. Europe, South America, over 40 countries. Each one offered healing, reflection, and new horizons. Travel became his therapy. Exploration became his prayer.
“Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer,” he says. “We travel to lose ourselves, only to find ourselves.”
Now cancer-free by all visible signs, Doug still carries the uncertainty that comes with survivorship. But more importantly, he carries faith. Faith in early detection. Faith in the medicine. Faith in miracles.
In May, he and Laura will venture north, to Iceland, Norway, and beyond the Arctic Circle to Svalbard, chasing the Northern Lights and new memories. There will be more tickets, more terminals, more treasured moments. And Doug will keep going and that is the gift.
Legacy Lane honors Doug Smith, a man whose Passport to Possibility is filled not just with countries, but with courage. Whose life reminds us that survivorship is not the end of the road, but the beginning of a brand new map.
*Special thanks to Bonnet Springs for allowing us to capture these images within the park, and to the Polk Arts & Cultural Alliance for making this project possible through their generous grant.