When Caroline Klein learned that the soft-tissue cancer she had battled had returned and was terminal, she decided to treat the news as a licence to live rather than a death sentence. Three days after doctors told the 40-year-old communications executive that her tumour was malignant and incurable, her longtime boyfriend Mike Gartlan proposed. The couple married a few months later.
Rather than stepping back from her career, Klein continued to serve as chief communications officer for Smith Entertainment Group. In the months after her diagnosis she helped the company celebrate the Utah Jazz’s 50th season and prepare to welcome an NHL franchise to Salt Lake City.
Klein also focused on making memories. She travelled with family and took her niece and nephews hiking in national parks. “My terminal diagnosis does not mean that my life is over,” she said. “It gave me a refreshed attitude to just live every day like there might not be a tomorrow.” Klein died in August 2025, but her practical optimism continues to inspire people to embrace life, even in the face of uncertainty.