SPOKANE, Wash. – Two years after undergoing stem cell transplant surgery, Lucy Riggs will play drums for her band, Lucy and the Diamonds, at this year’s Bloomsday race.
Lucy Riggs was diagnosed with Leukemia in 2021, requiring her to stay at Providence’s Sacred Heart hospital for more than 100 days. To help stay active, Lucy began to walk.
“One of the things the doctors told me to do was just to walk, so I’d walk the laps around the hospital floor, you couldn’t really leave so I’d walk circles and circles,” Riggs said.
At the end of her stay, Riggs had walked over four marathons in the hallways of the hospital. For her and the other kids who began to walk, it was a way to stay upbeat.
“Just keep their energy up and helps, not only you feel healthier physically but also helps keep your spirit up cause you’re not really allowed to leave, but getting out of the room can help a lot,” Riggs said.
One year after her transplant, Lucy was cleared to walk Bloomsday, supported by those closest to her.
“I was able to walk Bloomsday outside, so it was a little more safe for me. And with the rest of my family, it was kind of a celebration too,” Riggs said.
Riggs kept up with another hobby during her time in the hospital… drumming. She has been playing since before she could walk.
“I mean music is my life, I played so much in the hospital, so again with the walking it’s another side of what I did on the inside of the hospital and trying to bring that to the outside,” Riggs said.
Riggs played every week with Scott Ingresoll, a volunteer from Songs for Kids. Scott travels to rooms at hospitals to play and entertain kids. When he visited Riggs, he found a band partner. The janitor at the hospital named their band Lucy and the diamonds.
“He played guitar, I played my little drums, and we played every Tuesday. I never missed a week. Well, I might have missed one, but I tried to play as weekly as possible,” Riggs said.
A year after walking the Bloomsday course, Riggs will be back, but this time to play for those running the course. Riggs will be playing near the starting line, hoping to inspire runners to keep moving, just as she did.
