Don’t Count the Days. Make the Days Count.
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It was in 2015 that Gilbert and Kiki first met. From that first moment on, Kiki knew that Gilbert was the one that she would grow old with. Little did she know, they would not have as many years together as they thought they would.
It was in 2018 while Kiki and I were on a cruise to celebrate her Bachelorette "getaway," Gilbert knew something wasn't right. Kiki told him to go to the doctor and get some tests done, not thinking it was anything more than a side-effect of the hip replacement surgery that Gilbert had not too long before.
The following week, just a couple of months shy of their planned wedding, Gilbert and Kiki got the diagnosis of Gilbert's colon cancer. Not wanting to be distracted by getting better, Kiki & Gilbert decided to postpone their wedding until later in the year when Gilbert had undergone treatment for the cancer.
Later that year, Gilbert had undergone radiation and chemo treatment and was doing better. Everything looked to be on track with the wedding planning getting underway again, until one day in November, 2018.
Kiki was helping her Mom, Mary get dressed and noticed that Mary had one leg that was abnormally larger than the other. Kiki then went with her Mom the the hospital to have it looked at right away.
A short time later, they were given the diagnosis of Mary's cancer. Being in her mid-80's, Mary elected not to have surgery and go through treatment without it. Given her Mom's diagnosis, Kiki and Gilbert again, decided to postpone their wedding yet again until the spring of 2019.
Kiki was determined to get married come hell or high water and started planning the wedding for May, 2019. Unfortunately, tragedy once again struck the family when Kiki's mom, Mary passed away in April, 2019.
Kiki and her family were utterly devastated by the events in that past year. Not knowing what else to do, Kiki reached out the Wish Upon A Wedding to help them get married.
It was October 8th, 2019 when Gilbert and Kiki finally said their "I do's" in front of Gilbert & Kiki's families and close friends thanks to all of the volunteers at Wish Upon A Wedding (the video above is of that fun-filled happy occasion).
The celebration would be short-lived because just 2 weeks after their wedding that Gilbert was admitted to the hospital, where he would then spend most of his days from then until now due to his illness from the cancer.
Once again on December 30th, Gilbert was admitted to the hospital. As Kiki was waiting for her sister to take her to the hospital to be with Gilbert; hers & Gilbert's roommates gave Kiki the news that they did not think she could pay the rent due to Gilbert's illness and were breaking their lease 16 days later. This meant that Kiki would either have to come up with the entire rent on her own for 1/2 of January and the full rent going forward.
Seeing that she was on leave from her job, due to Gilbert's illness it was going to be impossible for Kiki do that for more than 2 months. Not knowing how Gilbert's most recent stint at the hospital would be, she knew that she may not get back to work as soon as she was hoping. This meant that she had to get hers and Gilbert's belongings out of their house in just 4 days.
Just last week, Kiki was given the news that Gilbert's body was shutting down and they wouldn't have the years and years of happiness that they were hoping for, together.
With this gofundme, Kiki is hoping that she can make Gilbert's last few weeks with her as comfortable and as special as she can make them, by putting him in a facility where she will be able to be with him and make him comfortable.
Unfortunately, Gilbert will probably not be able to go home again, so she wants to bring home to him. As she posted on her Facebook page, "My focus has to be on Gilbert, who cares about things."
Please find it in your heart to first pray. Pray for Kiki and Gilbert and their families.
If you can donate to the gofundme (no matter the amount), Kiki and Gilbert will be eternally grateful.
Kiki has been my best friend for over 25 years and I will do pretty much anything for her! She is an AMAZING woman with an amazing family (both hers and Gilbert's). Kiki does not have any children of her own, but she gained a fantastic son, James when she married Gilbert.
We will keep this page updated and add pictures along the way.
God bless!
It was in 2015 that Gilbert and Kiki first met. From that first moment on, Kiki knew that Gilbert was the one that she would grow old with. Little did she know, they would not have as many years together as they thought they would.
It was in 2018 while Kiki and I were on a cruise to celebrate her Bachelorette "getaway," Gilbert knew something wasn't right. Kiki told him to go to the doctor and get some tests done, not thinking it was anything more than a side-effect of the hip replacement surgery that Gilbert had not too long before.
The following week, just a couple of months shy of their planned wedding, Gilbert and Kiki got the diagnosis of Gilbert's colon cancer. Not wanting to be distracted by getting better, Kiki & Gilbert decided to postpone their wedding until later in the year when Gilbert had undergone treatment for the cancer.
Later that year, Gilbert had undergone radiation and chemo treatment and was doing better. Everything looked to be on track with the wedding planning getting underway again, until one day in November, 2018.
Kiki was helping her Mom, Mary get dressed and noticed that Mary had one leg that was abnormally larger than the other. Kiki then went with her Mom the the hospital to have it looked at right away.
A short time later, they were given the diagnosis of Mary's cancer. Being in her mid-80's, Mary elected not to have surgery and go through treatment without it. Given her Mom's diagnosis, Kiki and Gilbert again, decided to postpone their wedding yet again until the spring of 2019.
Kiki was determined to get married come hell or high water and started planning the wedding for May, 2019. Unfortunately, tragedy once again struck the family when Kiki's mom, Mary passed away in April, 2019.
Kiki and her family were utterly devastated by the events in that past year. Not knowing what else to do, Kiki reached out the Wish Upon A Wedding to help them get married.
It was October 8th, 2019 when Gilbert and Kiki finally said their "I do's" in front of Gilbert & Kiki's families and close friends thanks to all of the volunteers at Wish Upon A Wedding (the video above is of that fun-filled happy occasion).
The celebration would be short-lived because just 2 weeks after their wedding that Gilbert was admitted to the hospital, where he would then spend most of his days from then until now due to his illness from the cancer.
Once again on December 30th, Gilbert was admitted to the hospital. As Kiki was waiting for her sister to take her to the hospital to be with Gilbert; hers & Gilbert's roommates gave Kiki the news that they did not think she could pay the rent due to Gilbert's illness and were breaking their lease 16 days later. This meant that Kiki would either have to come up with the entire rent on her own for 1/2 of January and the full rent going forward.
Seeing that she was on leave from her job, due to Gilbert's illness it was going to be impossible for Kiki do that for more than 2 months. Not knowing how Gilbert's most recent stint at the hospital would be, she knew that she may not get back to work as soon as she was hoping. This meant that she had to get hers and Gilbert's belongings out of their house in just 4 days.
Just last week, Kiki was given the news that Gilbert's body was shutting down and they wouldn't have the years and years of happiness that they were hoping for, together.
With this gofundme, Kiki is hoping that she can make Gilbert's last few weeks with her as comfortable and as special as she can make them, by putting him in a facility where she will be able to be with him and make him comfortable.
Unfortunately, Gilbert will probably not be able to go home again, so she wants to bring home to him. As she posted on her Facebook page, "My focus has to be on Gilbert, who cares about things."
Please find it in your heart to first pray. Pray for Kiki and Gilbert and their families.
If you can donate to the gofundme (no matter the amount), Kiki and Gilbert will be eternally grateful.
Kiki has been my best friend for over 25 years and I will do pretty much anything for her! She is an AMAZING woman with an amazing family (both hers and Gilbert's). Kiki does not have any children of her own, but she gained a fantastic son, James when she married Gilbert.
We will keep this page updated and add pictures along the way.
God bless!
Fundraising team: Gilbert's Raiders (2)
Charmaine Gilstrap
Organizer
Sonoma, CA
James Quesada
Team member
