RICHMOND, Va. -- The community remembered Dr. Taleshia Chandler Monday as a fighter.
Chandler, 48, was laid to rest following a seven-year battle with breast cancer.
The First Lady at Cedar Street Baptist Church, Lady C, as she was known, openly shared her cancer story as a way to help others.
In 2014, Chandler knew something wasn't right. She had mammograms and ultrasounds that all came back negative.
But in August 2015, an MRI revealed stage 4 breast cancer which had spread to her liver and bones.
Through it all, Lady C's faith was unshakable.
"God has not failed me," she said. "He answers me every time I call.
Being at church and belting out songs gave her the strength she needed.
Chandler came to Richmond from Baltimore in 2018 when her husband, Dr. Anthony Chandler, became the pastor at Cedar Street.
Her profession was education and she became the administrative dean of the Amelia School in Richmond.
"I'm heartbroken to share the news of the passing of Dr. Taleshia Chandler," Richmond Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras wrote following her death. "[She] will be dearly missed."
Lady C had a way of making a lot of people smile, especially the big loves in her life, her husband, three children, and granddaughter.
One of the books she authored, "Sparkling through adversity" was her testimony.
Through the diagnoses, the endless treatments, and sick days, she sparkled and she loved.
And so many loved her back.
