Childhood Friends Reunite During Cancer Treatment

Two childhood classmates who served in the Tennessee National Guard have come together again during cancer treatment, nearly half a century after losing contact.

Billy Taylor, a two-time cancer survivor, returned to the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center at TriStar Natchez in Dixon, Tennessee, for more radiation therapy. He wasn’t shocked by this, considering his history with cancer.

At the same time, Randy Duke was confronting an aggressive throat cancer and was making his daily trips to the center on his motorcycle for radiation and chemotherapy.

For a few weeks, both men unknowingly passed one another without realizing they were old friends.

Having attended school in White Bluff, Tennessee, just 10 miles from Dixon, Duke and Taylor also served together in the same training unit of the Volunteer National Guard.

They lost contact in 1979 when Taylor left the Guard to start his own business, thinking that was the last they would see of each other.

While in the center’s waiting room, Taylor heard a nurse calling for Duke and instantly recognized the name. However, when he saw Duke, he hardly recognized the face.

“We had changed so much that I wasn’t sure it was him. If I hadn’t heard his name, I wouldn’t have known him. I never would have guessed who he was in a million years,” Taylor shared.

Three days later, he spotted Duke in the parking lot and couldn’t hold back. “Drake, is that you?” he shouted.

Duke, who was known by his middle name, Drake, in school due to the many Randys around, was taken aback but quickly caught on. “Oh my god, yeah. I get it now, Billy Ray. It was nice to meet him,” Duke remembered saying.

Since that reconnection, the two have formed a close bond, reminiscing about their time in the Guard and effectively filling gaps in Duke’s life.

Duke expressed that starting cancer treatment was tough, but the loneliness was even harder. “I used to know everyone in White Bluff, and now I hardly know anyone. I go to restaurants and look for familiar faces,” he admitted.

Now, they arrive a bit early for their morning appointments, which allows them extra time to catch up in the waiting area. “It felt so good to see him again. There aren’t many people who haven’t seen each other in 48 years,” Taylor noted.

Duke added, “As you get older, you see them less and less, so it might be a good time to reconnect.”

When Taylor completed her treatment, she rang the chemotherapy bell with Duke beside her. She has plans to do the same for him when he finishes his treatment in June.

In the meantime, Duke hopes to secure Taylor a part-time job once she’s well enough so they can work together again, just like they did back in the day.