Stanton natives take to the skies to raise cancer awareness

Two native Stanton residents took to the skies to raise money for cancer awareness.
Fred Nelson, a 1969 graduate and Lynn Hicks, a 1987 graduate, both skydived at a special event on Aug. 2 from the Knoxville Airport. The jump was part of an effort to raise $100,000 for the organization Above + Beyond Cancer, which Nelson and Hicks are both actively a part of.
While not classmates, Nelson said he did manage to establish an initial connection with the Hicks family prior to his graduation. Don Hicks moved to Stanton with his family that year to serve as a teacher and a coach and coached Nelson his senior year. After graduation, Nelson went to Midland College in Nebraska and Iowa Western Community College in Clarinda and also met his wife, Sandie.
“After I married, we lived 10 years in Tucson, Ariz., and spent quite a bit of time in the West. I also lived in Pella for 10 years, and I taught at Central College for a while. I’ve worked in theater and taught in theater, but I also got a law degree at the University of Arizona, so I worked two careers, really, and did a lot of things in between. My wife and I were living in Virginia prior to moving back to Iowa. My mom had health issues and we moved back in 2005 to Des Moines,” Nelson explained.
In 2005, Nelson was working for a theater company in Virginia before putting his law degree to work when he moved to Des Moines.
“Iowa Legal Aid was hiring, and so I finished out my employment career with Iowa Legal Aid, which provided a hotline for elderly Iowans. I helped those Iowans in civil issues with Iowa Legal Aid. It was a good match for me. I really liked that particular job and helping people in that career,” commented Nelson.

It was during this period that Nelson ended up connecting with Lynn Hicks.
“I knew him from his job at the Des Moines Register. I recognized the name right away. We’d run into each other a few times, and I knew his parents. Lynn’s mother worked at the Stanton Care Center, where my mother was a resident, so I saw Lynn’s mother quite a bit down at the nursing home, as well as his dad. It was interesting reconnecting with family and friends and people in the Stanton community during that period that my mom was in the care center in Stanton. When Lynn got involved in Above + Beyond Cancer, we became friends because I saw a lot more of him. His parents could come to the events as well,” stated Nelson.
Nelson became involved with the organization in 2015, and later found himself deeply affected by cancer.
“They asked me to help them start a meditation program, an offering for people dealing with cancer. Shortly thereafter, I was diagnosed with cancer. And so I became not only somebody that volunteered and helped them with programs, but also started participating in things. It’s a great organization in terms of encouraging people to make the best of every day,” advised Nelson. “We’re all impermanent. Above + Beyond Cancer encourages you to stay active in life, engaged in life, particularly physical activity, and doing things.”
As part of his activities, Nelson has been to Nepal, the Himalayas, and China, and hiked around Mount Kailash, considered the most sacred mountain in Asia. He also climbed Kilimanjaro as well as helping lead hikes and with training. For Nelson, it helped him deal with the challenges of life. From all of that activity, Nelson said the idea to jump out of an airplane this year came up.
“I had no aspirations to jump out of an airplane, but they always want some people that are participating in programs. They’ll ask a few people that have dealt with cancer and so forth. And they’d ask if I was interested and I asked my wife. She told me to go ahead and do it. So I did. It turned out that Lynn was also signed up to do it, and it was kind of fun that we were doing it at the same time,” commented Nelson.
Despite it being Nelson’s first time, he said that he didn’t have any fear or any stress about doing it.
“We flew up to 14,000 feet and then we all did our jump. The only time I ever felt a physical pang of fear was when I watched a video of me jumping out of the plane afterwards. The experience itself, and the person I jumped with, were amazing.  She had jumped 2,300 times, and we were the last out of our plane,” Nelson said.
Nelson described the process that was taken before he actually completed the jump.
“It almost comes across like a diversion. They told us what we were going to do: slide up to the door, put my feet under the plane at the opening, and lean my head against the shoulder of the person I was jumping with. She told me she’d count to three, and on three, we’d go. They repeated the instructions more than once. By that time, I was very focused on what I needed to do. I did as I was instructed, and I was out, just like that,” Nelson stated. “It’s almost surreal. At that point, I was just relishing the experience because it is so different. They tell you you’re falling at 120 miles an hour. When the chute opens, there’s a big kind of jerk. At that point I knew I could let go of any tension because now the parachute is open. The parachutes were big, almost like hang gliders. She asked if I wanted to do spins or anything special but I declined. I just wanted to enjoy the descent and the view as we were going, and that’s what we did.”
Photos and video were captured of the descent. Nelson said it was captured in a particularly special way.
“I requested a photographer, and I wasn’t really aware of how it worked until we jumped. The photographer was actually outside the plane, hanging on the side of the plane when I jumped out. She let go and fell with us until she caught up. She was taking photos and video at the same time and she was able to control the camera with a switch held in her mouth. After we opened the chute, she dropped further down and was on the ground by the time we got down. I was really amazed at the skill that the photographer had. And I just couldn’t believe it when I saw that she was just hanging outside on to the side of the plane to get the first photos and video when I came out of the plane,” commented Nelson.
While he enjoyed the experience, Nelson isn’t sure if he’ll partake in another jump.
“I’ve done it, and it was really a surreal, amazing experience. A lot of people were on the ground waiting for me that have dealt with cancer, or are supporting people that have dealt with cancer. It was a wonderful experience, but I don’t know if I have a desire to do it again, there’s just so many other things, but I’m definitely glad that I did it,” Nelson advised.
Nelson also shared his feelings on the importance of organizations such as Above + Beyond Cancer to continue to raise awareness.
“I know from personal experience how it’s helped and been beneficial to me, but I see it with other people that I work with or other people that participate, how it helps keep them positive or recognize that they need to take advantage of today, every day,” explained Nelson. “I love the way they do it in terms of physical activities, and embracing life in a physical way.  I lead some hikes, and when I get out there, I become aware that I’m part of something a lot bigger than me. That helps me deal with the challenges I’m faced with right away, whether it’s the way I feel today or other challenges. I know there’s other programs doing the same thing for other issues, and even though this is primarily cancer, it really helps you deal with just the challenges of life. It’s a great organization.”
While he stayed in the state after graduation, Lynn Hicks said he has enjoyed quite a career before connecting with Nelson again.
“I went to Drake University, and then went into newspapers. Most of my career was with the Des Moines Register and also a small paper in Wisconsin. I left the Register in 2018 after doing a lot of different jobs there, including reporter, columnist, and business editor. My last job was the opinion editor,” said Hicks. “I left in 2018 to go work at the Attorney General’s office, with Tom Miller. I did that until the election of 2022 and then left after that election and went to the Polk County Attorney’s office in early 2023. I do a little bit of communications, administration, and running programs there.”
Hicks said his parents, Don and Linda, still reside in Stanton, and while he knew of Nelson and his family, he appreciated the opportunity to connect more fully with Nelson when becoming a part of Above + Beyond Cancer.
“He was already very involved with the organization when I became a part of it. I really enjoyed getting to know him, I’d heard of him and I always enjoy the things we do through the organization, whether we’re hiking or involved in a book club other events. We’ve even taken ballroom dancing. Fred is an adventurous guy so I’ve enjoyed getting to know him,” commented Hicks.
Hicks said he initially became involved with Above + Beyond Cancer through Dr. Richard Deming, a Des Moines oncologist who founded the organization in 2011.
“At the time I was the business editor and I wrote a column called “Biz Buzz.” I had heard that Dr. Deming was taking a group of cancer survivors to the base camp of Mount Everest. I saw him at an event and asked if it was true. He kind of hesitated because I think he hadn’t decided for sure he was going to do it, but then he confirmed he was going to lead the group,” advised Hicks. “I included information in a column the next day. I wrote a few more stories over the years about some of the events the organization did but really wasn’t involved in it at that time. Then two years ago, I married Mary Van Heukelum who has been with the organization since the beginning and serves as a program director. She went on that initial trip to Nepal. When Mary and I started dating I really got involved with the organization.”
Hicks said Mary has had her own battles with cancer, and did her own jump from a plane prior to Hicks’ jump.
“I thought it was a great idea for a fundraiser. Mary was going through cancer treatments and she jumped with Dr. Deming and several other people the first time they held the event. I went down with her of course. She was in between chemo treatments at the time but she was feeling great and I figured if she could do it I could do it. Making it even better was the fact that I wanted to help raise money for such a good cause,” stated Hicks.
Being able to see the jump beforehand, Hicks said, allowed him to avoid being nervous for his jump.
“We were in a small plane all kind of crammed together on the floor. Fred was the last one of our group to jump, but I decided I’d be the first. I thought I would be less nervous if I went first and not watch everybody else jump. My instructor was great. His other job is a paramedic. Novice jumpers have to be strapped to a certified jumper at all times until they’re certified. With that in mind, and knowing he was a paramedic, I thought, ‘what could go wrong?’” Hicks joked. “We just kind of fell out of the plane. My photographer was outside waiting and they helped get me to the edge.”
Hicks added that the view of the ground was something that he’ll never forget.
“I was looking down at the ground 14,000 feet below me. That was maybe the most frightening part. Then we went out, and the free fall lasts about 60 seconds and that’s a pretty intense feeling. You’re going really fast and you can really feel the pressure of the wind on your face. The photographer comes up by you, floats, and you have to make sure you wave and put your thumbs up and smile. About the time I was wondering how long the free fall is going to last, my instructor pulled the cord. That was a great feeling, just floating and enjoying the view of the incredible fields and landscape,” commented Hicks. “When we came in for the landing, we pulled our legs up and it was almost like sliding into home plate at a baseball game.”
While Hicks said he’d be happy to jump again, he wants to give other people a chance to enjoy the same experience he had. Like Nelson, Hicks said the work of organizations like Above + Beyond cancer are very important.
“The sad fact is that cancer cases are rising in Iowa and it affects so many people. The bright spot is that many years ago, a cancer diagnosis was a death sentence and that’s not necessarily true anymore. People who survive cancer as well as the people who care for them need support, and one part of the mission of Above + Beyond Cancer is to provide that support to help people live healthy lives whether they’re going through treatment or have already completed their cancer journey and are in remission. My wife Mary is now two years cancer-free, and Above + Beyond Cancer helped us through her cancer journey.”
Hicks said the jump surpassed the $100,000 goal, raising a total of $128,000. While the focus is in the Des Moines area, the organization has started working with Cass County Health in Atlantic to develop programming for cancer survivors in Southwest Iowa.
To learn more, visit aboveandbeyondcancer.org. You can watch Fred’s dive at desmoinesskydivers.smugmug.com/2025-Videos/Aug-2-Above-Beyond-Cancer/Fred-Nelson/n-r5DDVp/i-TtxjRqw/A.