Battling for Grandpa

Gary Richardson is a 57 year old Dad and Grandpa. He has 4 children and 14 grandchildren. After a shoulder injury that never seemed to heal, he went in for a MRI. In 2013, we were all devasted when he was diagnosed with Multiple myeloma. Multiple myeloma is cancer of the plasma cells and is considered to be incurable, but treatable. In 2014, after 4 months of Chemo, Gary went to Froedtert for 1 month for an Autologous Transplant. This involved the extraction of Gary's own blood-forming cells, saving them, receiving high-doses of chemotherapy to destory diseased cells, and then infusing his stored cells back into his bloodstream. The hope was to have these cells find their way inside his bones and replace the damaged marrow. This procedure seemed to work well as results were positive for the following 18 months. In May of 2015, we found out the treatment was no longer working. Gary is now going through IV Chemotherapy twice a week preparing to go through another transplant. This time the treatment will be different. A donor's cells will be used, the procedure will affect Gary's body more aggressively, and he will have to stay in Milwaukee longer. The hospital stay will be at least 1 month.  After that, they will have the expense of staying in an apartment in Milwaukee for 3 months. Gary, along with his wife Cathy, have been applying for financial aid and any grant available to them to help offset medical expenses. Although they have been working through this difficult time, Gary will be forced to stop working very shortly. He will not be able to return to work for about 8 months. Our goal is to ensure their bills are paid so their main focus can be to kick cancer's butt! Please donate, spread the word, and keep Gary in your prayers.