Daily Business Review reporter Julie Kay so loved her job that when the opportunity arose to join a group of attorneys going to Cuba, she refused to let her battle with cancer get in the way.
Two days after receiving chemotherapy treatment, she boarded a plane with the international law section of the Florida Bar last year. She didn't tell anyone about the treatment because she was afraid she wouldn't be allowed to go.
Kay, 54, died Sunday in Pompano Beach after a 10-year battle with ovarian cancer that included multiple surgeries, chemotherapy and a four-month clinical trial in Houston.
Kay was ferociously private about her health issues to the end, and friends said she saw it as a victory that so many people didn't know she was so ill.
"She never complained about her illness and despised pity," said Sallie James, Kay's friend for more than 30 years. "She was a warrior with the kind of courage that is seldom seen anywhere. Julie loved being a reporter more than anything and always focused her energy on her work instead of her health."
For Kay, journalism was a kind of medicine for the soul. She reveled in finding "juicy" story ideas as business of law reporter at the Daily Business Review for more than six years. Her life revolved around reporting, her friends, and her nieces and nephews.
Although Julie did not often cover federal criminal cases, she was an outstanding reporter and close friend. No one can fill her shoes at the DBR.
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