Keira Cherry - Keira Cherry: Storyteller & Journalist

My Work

Resume

Blog Posts

Story Project

Final Project Essay

Contact

Dive into the world of Keira Cherry, a dedicated journalist based in San Diego. Explore her bio, resume, contact details, and recent stories that bring news to life. Stay informed and inspired with Keira's insightful reporting.Photo by Nicole Silhan

Welcome!

Keira Cherry is a third-year Journalism undergraduate pursuing a career as a Journalist. She has a background in blogging, marketing, and outreach with a variety of organizations.Keira specifically enjoys writing news and opinion pieces, but is open to all sections of print. She has many interests, including investigative work, print and marketing management, but is open to a variety of positions. During her personal time, she enjoys watching Gilmore Girls and reading romance and fiction novels.

Keira Cherry

Photo by Nicole Silhan

About Me

After a life-altering diagnosis, Leah Alexis Adams was faced with a future of fear and uncertainty.By Keira CherryA professional headshot of Leah Alexis Adams was provided by her. “Before I was diagnosed with melanoma, I thought I was doing everything right. I loved being outside, running, and staying active. Like so many people, I grew up believing a tan meant “healthy.” Sunscreen wasn’t something I wore daily, and I never thought twice about skipping long sleeves or sun-protective clothing. I lived my life fully, but I didn’t realize how much silent damage the sun was causing beneath my skin.” <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.ihadcancer.com/leah-adams-my-stage-1a-melanoma-journey">Leah Alexis Adams</a> is a 32-year-old cancer survivor from Cleveland, Ohio. She was first diagnosed with melanoma (the deadliest form of skin cancer) at age 26. At the time of diagnosis, she was unaware of exactly what melanoma was and only understood the fear she felt. It started as a mole that was pointed out by her mother. Adams said, “ It was different from the others — something in my gut told me to get it checked.”&nbsp; “You have melanoma”

Leah Alexis Adams - Against All Odds

Synopsis:This semester, I learned a great deal about website development and crafting well developed articles. The weekly lectures taught me many different topics in journalism such as media ethics and storytelling. This class has been one of the most effective journalism classes that I have taken here at San Diego State that I feel has helped me prepare content for my future in the field of journalism.Developing the Story Project:Everytime I have taken a class from Professor Koenig, I have always seen huge improvements in my writing from beginning to end of the semester.&nbsp; When it came to writing the story, I followed the journalistic and ethical guidelines of reporting information that is in the interest of the public knowledge and being truthful with my content.&nbsp;When working on this project, I struggled with finding facts and professional sources for my story. The easiest part was interviewing the cancer survivor and researching her content online through popular platforms such as Instagram and TikTok. I had gathered so many quotes and content from my interview questions with the subject but when it came to finding two professional sources, I got a little bit stuck with finding someone relevant and capable of gathering information from.Digital Media Experience:Putting together my solo website was extremely confusing and at times difficult but the step by step instructions and lab sessions were valuable times for me to figure it out with assistance.&nbsp;This experience has helped me understand the frustration that could come with digital journalism but also made me have tremendous respect for some of the journalism sites that I have encountered in the past now knowing how time consuming and complex it was to build.&nbsp;Utilizing data for digital journalism was actually one of the easiest parts for me when it came to making the infographic. I really enjoyed this aspect because I was able to use a platform that I am very familiar with; Canva. Using digital media tools is still a weak spot of mine and would honestly love an elective that is based solely on the digital aspects and building a toolkit for the future. I really enjoyed designing the website once all of the logistical parts were completed but figuring out the domain was extremely difficult. I would much rather be on the design portion after the website is created than be developing the site from scratch.

JMS 430 Final Project Essay

Contact Keira Cherry

<h3><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://thedailyaztec.com/122842/showcase/temecula-valley-balloon-wine-festival-returns-with-big-names-and-bright-nights/">Temecula Valley Balloon &amp; Wine Festival Returns with Big Names and Bright Nights</a></h3><h4>Published by The Daily Aztec</h4>Three stacked stages brought nonstop live music to Temecula, from big-name acts to local fan favorites<h3><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://thedailyaztec.com/123181/showcase/walker-hayes-talks-faith-and-family/">Walker Hayes Talks Faith and Family</a></h3><h4>Published by The Daily Aztec</h4>On the stage, he’s fancy like Applebee’s, but behind the curtain is a dad who cherishes his faith and family

Keira Cherry's Published Pieces

Photo by Nicole Silhan<h3>Work Experience</h3>SDSU Veterans Center - Receptionist/Programming Intern (San Diego, CA)<ul><li>April 2024 - current employment</li></ul>The Healing Cancer Project - Marketing Outreach Lead (San Diego, CA)<ul><li>June 2025 - current employment</li><li>Unpaid internship</li></ul>Sunglass Hut - Sales Associate (Temecula, CA)<ul><li>Summer of 2023 and 2024</li></ul>SDSU Children's Center - Childcare Nutrition Assistant (San Diego, CA)<ul><li>January 2024 - January 2025</li></ul><h3>Skillset</h3><ul><li>Social media management</li><li>Blogging</li><li>Outreach</li><li>Sales</li><li>Customer service</li><li>Administrative</li><li>Organization</li></ul><h3>Education</h3>San Diego State University - Journalism<ul><li>Fall 2023 - Spring 2026</li></ul>Temecula Valley High School - Diploma<ul><li>2019 - 2023</li></ul><h3>Languages</h3>English (primary)American Sign Language<h3>References</h3>Elise Gary<ul><li>School Certifying Official for the SDSU Veterans Center</li><li>Phone number: 619-594-7181</li></ul>McKenna Avery<ul><li>Co-founder of The Healing Cancer Project</li><li>Phone number: 909-747-4333</li></ul>

Keira Cherry's Resume

Good evening, readers. Welcome to the start of my blog! I want to thank you for taking the time to view my blog and look forward to sharing my thoughts and ideas with you.Going into my first semester of senior year at San Diego State, I look forward to improving my blogging skills and gaining material and my own skillset. I am most excited to get more practice with writing blog posts and what things I like/dislike. With a heavy workload and various opportunities, I feel nervous but eager to see how far I have come by the end of this semester.

So far this semester, I can already feel that I have become much more confident in my writing and have found a newfound joy in blog posts. This class is very enjoyable with a reasonable workload, which makes all the difference. Professor Koenig was one of my favorite professors throughout college, so I am glad to be taking his class once again after time of improvement through other classes. For my proposed story project, I am excited to be working with a topic that means a great deal to me and allows me to showcase some of what I have learned through my internship and other journalism classes.

10/6 Update

<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://medium.com/@kcherry7998/trader-joes-mini-totes-strike-again-7af9c07bbd51">https://medium.com/@kcherry7998/trader-joes-mini-totes-strike-again-7af9c07bbd51</a>

Trader Joe’s Mini Totes Strike Again

Data Visualization Map

Data Visualization Infographic

<h4>Leah Alexis Adams shares her scar from her Melanoma diagnosis.</h4> After getting a biopsy, she received a call from her dermatologist with the results and heard the words, “You have melanoma.”&nbsp; Adams described feeling shocked by the results; she felt that she was so young and healthy and couldn’t believe this was happening to her. The questions immediately began flooding in: “How bad is it? What stage? What does this mean for my future?” When informed of Adam’s diagnosis, her husband, Jeff Kretschmar, recalled feeling incredibly worried.&nbsp; “The moment I heard the word ‘cancer,’ my mind went to the worst possible place,” Kretschmar said. “That phone call, and her diagnosis, felt like it suddenly put that future in jeopardy. Still, I didn’t want her to see how worried I was. I knew she would need my support, so I tried to stay strong and steady for her.” Adams described feeling tremendous gratitude for all of the support that she had around her at the time. Naturally, most people want to appear strong and put together but sometimes life can kick you down. “My lifestyle was vibrant and busy — I poured myself into running, spending time with friends and family, and just enjoying life. Cancer felt like something distant, something that happened to other people, not to me. Looking back, I see how unprepared I was for the word ‘melanoma’ to enter my story.” Adams said. Talking melanoma

<h4>An infographic created by Keira Cherry that informs of 5 early signs of spotting skin cancer with information provided by <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.mdanderson.org/cancer-types/skin-cancer/skin-cancer-symptoms.html">The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center</a>.</h4> In her research, Keira identified several notable statements from accredited medical professionals. Early detection is an important factor to watch out for because the earlier you discover something, the better your chances of survival are. Everyone should be doing at-home checks for any suspicious skin conditions and follow up with your doctor because catching it early can make all the difference. According to <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.yalemedicine.org/specialists/jeffrey-m-cohen">Jeffrey Cohen, MD, MPH</a>, from the Yale Medicine website, “The majority of first-time cases of melanoma are found by patients themselves,” Dr. Cohen notes, stressing the importance of self exams to assess moles — common skin growths that typically appear as small, dark spots,” according to the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/3-things-melanoma">Yale Medicine Website</a>. It’s easy for survivor patients to dwell on the negative and worry about the cancer coming back leading them radically overthink. Dr. Patel, a medical oncologist and associate professor, agreed, “If you play the ‘what if’ game, you’ve expended the sands in the hourglass on a negative emotion when there are plenty of things to feel positive or grateful for,”” according to the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.curemelanoma.org/blog/practical-recommendations-for-surviving-and-thriving-despite-melanoma">Melanoma Research Alliance</a> website. Life After Diagnosis After diagnosis, Adam’s outlook on life was altered: “Suddenly I understood how quickly life can change, and how important it is not to take a single day for granted.” Dark times followed after diagnosis, fear set in deep, and the unknowns continued to haunt. “Every skin check felt like it could change my future in an instant. Living with that kind of anxiety was exhausting, and there were days it felt heavier than the physical recovery.” Remission brought relief to both Adams and her husband.&nbsp; “Leah received exceptional care, and her regular skin checks have shown no new melanoma. It has now been about six years since her diagnosis. We were married this summer, and we are looking forward to a long, happy, and healthy life together,” said Kretschmar. Adams described leaning on her close friends and family because communication helped with the fear. In addition, her love for running gave her an outlet.&nbsp; “Running gave me space to process, to let out stress, and to feel strong when so much felt out of my control,” said Adams. Adams also mentioned journaling as a way that she managed her emotions, as well as learning to advocate for herself. By speaking out on the internet about Melanoma, she can educate others and feel a sense of “purpose to the pain.” Advice from a Survivor

A video shared on Leah Alexis Adam’s Instagram (<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DKhZEaWAR0e/">@theleahalexis</a>) to address comments regarding her being a survivor.

With all that she knows now, there’s so much she would love to tell her younger self, such as,&nbsp; “I know you think tanning makes you beautiful, and that skipping sunscreen is fine, but it’s not. All those days you spent in the sun without protection, chasing a tan, they added up in ways you didn’t realize.” She admits that she should’ve protected her body, but instead of blame, she chooses to learn. To anyone who is newly diagnosed or is close to someone who is, Adams has a message:&nbsp; “You are not alone. I know how overwhelming and terrifying those first days feel — the fear, the uncertainty, the questions you don’t even know how to ask yet. But take it one step at a time. Advocate for yourself, ask every question, and don’t be afraid to push for answers. Lean on your support system, because you don’t have to carry this by yourself. And remember that melanoma is serious, but there is also so much hope. Treatments and research have come so far, and people are living full, meaningful lives after a diagnosis. It’s ok to feel scared, but don’t lose sight of your strength. You are stronger than you think, and you can get through this.”