SNOHOMISH — He’s lost close to 60 pounds and some hair, and he might not be as quick with a handshake, but Bill Mester is glad to be back at work running the Snohomish School District.
Nine months after being diagnosed with cancer and enduring aggressive medical treatment, Mester has returned to work full time leading the district of more than 8,500 students.
“I have the energy for the job,” he said.
Mester, 60, was diagnosed with a rare form of non-Hodgkins lymphoma in October. His treatment required radiation, chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant.
Recovery is a long process. He is still regaining his strength and must take extra precautions to protect his immune system, which means fewer crowds, handshakes and hugs for awhile.
His ordeal, he said, was grueling and eye opening.
The school leader learned how important it was to follow directions. His doctors encouraged him to walk each day to strengthen his atrophied muscles. He did so no matter how weak and nauseous he felt, pushing his IV pole along the hospital halls for a mile and a half each day, while being supported by his wife, children or in-laws holding a hand.
He came to appreciate the cutting-edge miracles of medical science. He saw the importance of family for the countless tedious hours each spent by his side in the hospital and through his recovery.
He was touched by the Snohomish community for its words of encouragement and blood drives to show him support. One drive saw 90 school district employees roll up their sleeves and offer a vein. Most were first-time donors. A similar blood drive took place in Monroe, where Mester’s wife, Fran, is an assistant superintendent.
“Word of the drives and their success spread throughout Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, and I felt proud to be part of such a caring community,” Mester said.
Fran Mester said her husband was focused on getting well and determined to get back to work when he was able.
“My kitchen became his office,” she said.
Betty Robertson, the Snohomish assistant superintendent who led the district during Mester’s medical leave, said she received messages from an increasing number of people who would spot him in the community as he began to get better.
“People would tell on him, but that was a good sign that there were Bill sightings,” she said.
Mester said he is impressed, but not surprised, with how smoothly the district was run in his absence.
During that time, voters passed a $262 million bond measure, the largest school bond in Snohomish County history. Among other things, it will allow the district to finish major construction work at Snohomish High School, expand and modernize its middle schools, rebuild two elementary schools and build an aquatics center.
Also, the new $88.9 million Glacier Peak High School took shape. It will open in September.
His battle with cancer rekindled a long-held interest in offering a biotechnology program for high school students.
“What we need to do is set up a biotechnology pathway where we work with people at the University of Washington and Fred Hutchinson (Cancer Research Center),” he said. “I have always raised the question. I need to raise that with some high level of enthusiasm this year.”
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