Medford teacher gets financial gift of a lifetime, a year's worth of mortgage payments

MEDFORD, Ore. —A Medford-based business is surprising one lucky woman in a special way. Medford teacher, Miranda Gillaspie is being rewarded after going through an unimaginably difficult year.

38-year-old, Miranda Gillaspie has been teaching health at South Medford High School for the last 13 years. Like many, 2020 came with its own set of challenges.

“We’re leaving school on a Thursday, we found out Friday that school was going to be taking the two-week long spring break, so we took that 2-week spring break and it was in that time we were gone that I got my diagnosis,” said Gillaspie.

Doctors told her she had breast cancer last March. Navigating the pandemic, raising her 2 daughters, and tackling her illness, began to pile up.

“They were kind of like you’re gonna get your port in a week, you’re going to start chemo in two weeks, I think in three weeks I didn’t have hair,” said Gillaspie.

But on Tuesday she was given a huge financial boost. Her mortgage paid for an entire year.

“I’m speechless just super surprised so thankful, so blessed, the girls are so thrilled they think this is so cool,” said Gillaspie.

Jones and Associates Premier Financial Solutions, is a southern Oregon wealth management firm. It’s footing the bill along with Gradient Gives Back Foundation.

It’s a nonprofit that supports people going through tough times. Kelly Jones, the organization’s CFO, says every year her company awards mortgage support to someone locally.

“We felt that Miranda’s story and her circumstance over the last year was a good match for our program,” said Jones.

Gillaspie was nominated by a friend and was selected from over 80 applicants.

“I know that she’s the kind of person to pay a gift like this forward over time and probably already has through her involvement in the community,” said Jones.

After chemo, radiation, and a mastectomy, Gillaspie has one more surgery scheduled in August.

“Just a little bit more flexibility and get ahead and just a sigh of relief,” said Gillaspie.

Jones says she never missed a day of teaching throughout her hardships.