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Teri Dobbins, Marine Corps wife and mother to three beautiful children (William "Will", 13; Matthew "Matt", 9; and Alexandra "Lexi", 6) , was diagnosed with Glioblastoma Multiforme on Aug. 21, 2017. This led to a brain surgery to remove a mass that was discovered after a trip to the ER for really bad headaches.
She has fought hard through brain surgery and the standard of care, which is Radiation Therapy and Chemotherapy for one month following the procedure. Then Teri did a sustainment phase of Chemo and started Optune therapy in December 2017.
She and her husband, Bay, shaved their heads on Dec. 3 to prepare for her Optune treatment (Teri because she had to and Bay to be on her team).
Teri had clean brain scans for over a year, but then she started experiencing really bad neck and back pain this past October. They had hoped it was a pinched nerve...
Unfortunately, on Nov. 1, 2018, Teri and Bay learned her cancer was back - and in her spine, which is very rare.
She has just completed three weeks of radiation treatment and is again going through chemotherapy. This news and another round of treatment has been tough on the Dobbins family.
They are hoping to move her into a skilled nursing facility, which will likely require out of pocket costs. Teri is now completely paralyzed on the left side of her body (and she is left handed). Please pray for Teri and her family and consider donating here to help with expenses.
Update: The desired skilled nursing facility will not accept Teri. This is good news emotionally as she'll be in the familiarity of her own home and with family, but will likely require a nursing assistant.
Thank you for your prayers and donations during this difficult time.
Update: Bay brought Teri home last night. It was a rough night, and then today, their home health company was unable to show up and they found themselves back in the ER this afternoon.
Still, enduring all this, they are back home, Teri is in bed and comfortable and will continue to press on each day.
A message from Bay (11/29/2018):
For those sending thoughts and prayers, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. The generosity that has been shown to us has been just astonishing. Teri likes to say I am made of stone, but everyone's willingness and desire to think of us, to pray for us, and to help us has brought tears to my eyes on more than one occasion.
As challenging as times are for us, the friendships we have will help us to endure even more. Thank you from us to all of you.
Update from Bay (12/19/2018):
How do you say, “Thank you!” to people you don’t know? How do you thank your friends and family when they have been so generous? When Sonja asked me if I was okay with her starting a Gofundme page on our behalf, I thought that it would be inconsequential. Maybe a few dollars to help pay for supplies, or transportation. The response to this has been astonishing. I don’t know how to thank all of you. Your generosity truly shows human kindness.
At least, let me provide an update since the last one posted by Sonja. Since bringing Teri home, we have all had to learn what a “new normal” would look like. With her disability, it is very difficult to get her upstairs, so we have turned my old office into her new bedroom. It keeps her on the main floor with easy access to the front door, to get her to her appointments and the family room when she has the energy to come out and visit. As a family, we spend most of our time on the main floor, so drive-by visits from the kids happen regularly. Good for Teri’s spirits.
We have home health care coming most weekdays. They provide nursing care, physical therapy and occupational therapy, and a home health aid who provides care and comfort. They are short visits, but we continue to plug away with them. Teri's mom and I provide most of Teri's care. We have become a pretty good team. We have to provide a lot of TLC to Teri, from making sure she gets her medicine on time, to brining her meals and drinks, we do a lot together.
While I know there isn’t an accounting office, I do want everyone to know that we are spending your generous donations on things like second opinions, non-emergency medical transportation (I had no idea how expensive that was going to be!), additional supplies for Teri’s care and the million other small things that you just don’t think about until you’re here.
Once again, thank you to Sonja Hanson for setting this up. And a million thanks to those of you who sent your thoughts, prayers and donations. Truly, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.
Final Update:
Family, friends and strangers, this is my final update to this GoFundMe campaign. First and foremost, I want to thank everyone. The generosity shown by everyone has truly been inspiring. What I thought would be a footnote has turned into something special. I wish I could thank each of you in person, but I don’t know many of you, and those I do know are spread to the four corners of the world.
The saga of Teri’s illness is approaching its final chapter. Earlier this week, we made the decision to admit her into hospice. It’s not without some level of emotional conflict. The ever-present idea that we’re “giving up” is at war with the reality that she is going to pass from this earth, regardless of any decisions we make. We decided that her comfort and dignity were more important than “raging against the dying of the light.”
The second hardest part of this journey (so far) has been telling our children what “hospice” means. That is truly a heart-wrenching moment. Kids are not sophisticated enough to understand implication and innuendo. You have to tell them bluntly, in a way that they understand, without being heartless. Tough to thread that needle. I would not wish this pain on my worst enemy.
This has been an awful journey, but it has also borne some truly heart-warming moments. Not the least of which is the outpouring of support of which we’ve been the recipients. I have learned much about commitment, even when I thought I knew. I have learned to love my children more, even when I thought I knew. I have learned how important it is to have the support of your friends and family, in times like these, even though I thought I knew. And I learned that the hardest things to do are ask for help, and apologize. You know what else? Those last two? They get so much easier, the more you do them.
Be well everyone, hug those you love, smile at those you don’t, and take care of yourself.
Bay Dobbins
She has fought hard through brain surgery and the standard of care, which is Radiation Therapy and Chemotherapy for one month following the procedure. Then Teri did a sustainment phase of Chemo and started Optune therapy in December 2017.
She and her husband, Bay, shaved their heads on Dec. 3 to prepare for her Optune treatment (Teri because she had to and Bay to be on her team).
Teri had clean brain scans for over a year, but then she started experiencing really bad neck and back pain this past October. They had hoped it was a pinched nerve...
Unfortunately, on Nov. 1, 2018, Teri and Bay learned her cancer was back - and in her spine, which is very rare.
She has just completed three weeks of radiation treatment and is again going through chemotherapy. This news and another round of treatment has been tough on the Dobbins family.
They are hoping to move her into a skilled nursing facility, which will likely require out of pocket costs. Teri is now completely paralyzed on the left side of her body (and she is left handed). Please pray for Teri and her family and consider donating here to help with expenses.
Update: The desired skilled nursing facility will not accept Teri. This is good news emotionally as she'll be in the familiarity of her own home and with family, but will likely require a nursing assistant.
Thank you for your prayers and donations during this difficult time.
Update: Bay brought Teri home last night. It was a rough night, and then today, their home health company was unable to show up and they found themselves back in the ER this afternoon.
Still, enduring all this, they are back home, Teri is in bed and comfortable and will continue to press on each day.
A message from Bay (11/29/2018):
For those sending thoughts and prayers, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. The generosity that has been shown to us has been just astonishing. Teri likes to say I am made of stone, but everyone's willingness and desire to think of us, to pray for us, and to help us has brought tears to my eyes on more than one occasion.
As challenging as times are for us, the friendships we have will help us to endure even more. Thank you from us to all of you.
Update from Bay (12/19/2018):
How do you say, “Thank you!” to people you don’t know? How do you thank your friends and family when they have been so generous? When Sonja asked me if I was okay with her starting a Gofundme page on our behalf, I thought that it would be inconsequential. Maybe a few dollars to help pay for supplies, or transportation. The response to this has been astonishing. I don’t know how to thank all of you. Your generosity truly shows human kindness.
At least, let me provide an update since the last one posted by Sonja. Since bringing Teri home, we have all had to learn what a “new normal” would look like. With her disability, it is very difficult to get her upstairs, so we have turned my old office into her new bedroom. It keeps her on the main floor with easy access to the front door, to get her to her appointments and the family room when she has the energy to come out and visit. As a family, we spend most of our time on the main floor, so drive-by visits from the kids happen regularly. Good for Teri’s spirits.
We have home health care coming most weekdays. They provide nursing care, physical therapy and occupational therapy, and a home health aid who provides care and comfort. They are short visits, but we continue to plug away with them. Teri's mom and I provide most of Teri's care. We have become a pretty good team. We have to provide a lot of TLC to Teri, from making sure she gets her medicine on time, to brining her meals and drinks, we do a lot together.
While I know there isn’t an accounting office, I do want everyone to know that we are spending your generous donations on things like second opinions, non-emergency medical transportation (I had no idea how expensive that was going to be!), additional supplies for Teri’s care and the million other small things that you just don’t think about until you’re here.
Once again, thank you to Sonja Hanson for setting this up. And a million thanks to those of you who sent your thoughts, prayers and donations. Truly, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.
Final Update:
Family, friends and strangers, this is my final update to this GoFundMe campaign. First and foremost, I want to thank everyone. The generosity shown by everyone has truly been inspiring. What I thought would be a footnote has turned into something special. I wish I could thank each of you in person, but I don’t know many of you, and those I do know are spread to the four corners of the world.
The saga of Teri’s illness is approaching its final chapter. Earlier this week, we made the decision to admit her into hospice. It’s not without some level of emotional conflict. The ever-present idea that we’re “giving up” is at war with the reality that she is going to pass from this earth, regardless of any decisions we make. We decided that her comfort and dignity were more important than “raging against the dying of the light.”
The second hardest part of this journey (so far) has been telling our children what “hospice” means. That is truly a heart-wrenching moment. Kids are not sophisticated enough to understand implication and innuendo. You have to tell them bluntly, in a way that they understand, without being heartless. Tough to thread that needle. I would not wish this pain on my worst enemy.
This has been an awful journey, but it has also borne some truly heart-warming moments. Not the least of which is the outpouring of support of which we’ve been the recipients. I have learned much about commitment, even when I thought I knew. I have learned to love my children more, even when I thought I knew. I have learned how important it is to have the support of your friends and family, in times like these, even though I thought I knew. And I learned that the hardest things to do are ask for help, and apologize. You know what else? Those last two? They get so much easier, the more you do them.
Be well everyone, hug those you love, smile at those you don’t, and take care of yourself.
Bay Dobbins
Organizer and beneficiary
Sonja Hanson
Organizer
Bainbridge Island, WA
William Dobbins
Beneficiary
