We have some amazing friends, and until now I myself have not even known the full extent of their journey together.  Julie and Cory along with their son Adam  have been good friends of mine for some time, they are such a wonderful family with hearts of gold always willing to help those around them at a moments notice. With that being said they haven't had an easy road these past few years, but even then they have persisted, and continued to be nothing short of incredible. Now please take a moment to read about their journey right from Cory. 

The Crawfords and their story:

"For those that may not know, my wife, Julie Crawford has fought an extended battle with Melanoma for the last 4 1/2 years.  Julie is the love of my life, my high school sweetheart, and mother to our amazing son Adam who turned 6 in March.

 Julie and I have been together for longer than we have been apart, nearly 19 years.  We never thought, ever, that we would face something like Cancer in our young lives.  The world thought differently and in Nov of 2010 at the age of 29 Julie was diagnosed with  stage 3+ Melanoma.

 After having what was assumed by her Doctors to be a harmless scar removed from her right arm, the diagnosis was delivered.  Nothing rocks a young families world like hearing some of the things we heard during that period.  Over the following weeks/months Julie went through several invasive surgeries as they first removed the rest of the major tumour and we then learned that cancer had also spread to the lymph nodes.  In all there would be 5 significant surgeries (along with a number of biopsies) performed in the area over the next three years as the Cancer continued to reoccur.  The cancer would eventually be determined as inoperable due to it's growing proximity to major nerves in Sept of 2013.

 In addition to surgeries over the years Julie has been through a number of drug and non drug treatments.  She has been through Radiation as well as 5 separate drug treatments, a cumulative effect of 145 weeks of being enrolled in scheduled treatments along with countless IVs, cat scans, blood work, pet scans, the list goes on.

 On March 16th of this year we would learn that the cancer had spread to Julie's lungs.

 Through all of this Julie has showed unbelievable bravery and strength.  It is a rare occasion that she doesn't still have a smile on her face despite everything she has been through, and it has not been an easy road.  This experience has formed and ruined relationships, has brought us closer to some and pushed us further from others.  There have been times of more support than we needed and times where there never seemed to be enough.  We have been tested as a family but we have persevered.

The next phase of Julie's treatment will be what is called an adoptive T-cell transfer.  Unfortunately there is only one place in Canada where this treatment is possible and that is the Princess Margret Hospital in Toronto Ontario.  We know for sure that we will need to make at least two extended trips to Toronto that will add up to several weeks for this treatment, once we begin it could be more. "

To the point of the matter:

Julie and Cory along with their son Adam have been on a long road together so far, with so many up's and downs that road has been more of a rollercoaster than anything, but throughout the years they still remained their amazing selves and such good friends rarely asking for anything. 

With the extended trips and T-cell treatment in Toronto costs will add up, this is a given,  so I ask you on their behalf to open your hearts to this wonderful family and help people who have always been helping others. Any little bit helps and is always appricaited. 

If the amount raised ends up exceeding what the Crawfords expenses ultimately end up being out in Toronto Cory has stated than any extra funds will be donated and will be split between Young Adults Cancer Canada (YACC) and Survive and Thrive. 

http://www.youngadultcancer.ca

http://survivethrive.org

Thank you all for taking the time to learn about the Crawfords and their story.