But the 14-year-old Jersey City girl becomes more withdrawn when the subject turns to the illness that has kept away from her home in the city's Greenville section for most of the last three months.
Beckner was diagnosed in August with bone cancer after she felt pain in her knees during a family vacation. Since then, she has endured prolonged stays at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York for chemotherapy to remove cancerous tumors that have weakened her left leg and lower spine.
Bone cancer is the sixth leading cause of cancer amongst children ages 14 and under in the U.S., and affects about 900 people (children and adults) each year, with one third succumbing.Milkman's daughter
When interviewed last week, Victoria sat in a wheelchair while being tended to by her father Jimmy, a New York City-based milkman who had stopped working since her daughter became ill, and her 12-year old sister Sara. Her mom Jeannie works at New Jersey City University.
As one could imagine, this harrowing period has taken its toll on the teen, who would be currently attending McNair Academic High School in downtown Jersey City, a public magnet school for the academically talented. She graduated from Our Lady of Mercy School in Jersey City.
"It's hard, scary, annoying, frustrating," said Victoria Beckner, who aspires to be either a professional basketball player or a forensic scientist.
The interview took place on the last day of a five-day period at home, as she had to return to Sloan-Kettering the next day for further treatment.
Beckner's plight has garnered attention of the larger community. This coming Saturday, Nov. 15, a group known as Friends of Victoria Beckner will hold a benefit at Jersey City Moose Lodge 266, at 60 West Side Ave. from 5 to 11 p.m. Optimistic in a tough time
Jimmy Beckner keeps a positive outlook for his oldest child. He says his outlook is a product of his training in the U.S. Marines in his youth, and also comes from the support of people who have learned about Victoria's illness.
"I can't tell you how much my family appreciates all the support from the people we know, and even strangers once they find out about Victoria," he said.
That optimism has helped Beckner even in the face of unintentionally pessimistic comments.
"I had one guy tell me, 'What if the inevitable happens?' and I'm like, 'I don't what's going to happen; why are telling me this?' " he said. "All I know is that you can't give up."
The ordeal has also been a learning experience.
"You take nothing for granted and you gain a greater appreciation for life," Jimmy Beckner said.
Victoria also keeps up a brave front with help from her childhood friends, who often visit her.
"We don't really talk about what is happening to me unless they ask," Victoria Beckner said. "They come to cheer me up, and I enjoy seeing them."
She said she will try to make it to the benefit, but it all depends on how her treatment goes. For more information on the benefit, which costs $20 per ticket, call (201) 424-2242. Comments on this story can be sent to rkaulessar@hudsonreporter.com
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