Our names are Cierra and Dakota, and we’re Owen’s parents.

As 2025 was supposed to wind down into Christmas chaos and New Year celebrations, our family instead got the kind of news you never want to hear: Owen, our 8‑year‑old son, has stage 2 Hodgkin’s lymphoma – a blood cancer. We ended the year with a diagnosis no parent wants and started 2026 focused on one thing: helping Owen kick this cancer’s ass.

Owen is brave, but he is still a little boy whose life has been suddenly filled with words like “port placement,” “cycles,” and “side effects” instead of just school, friends, and games. He still asks if he’ll be able to play and be on a soccer team like before, and the journey is so new that all we can honestly say is, “We’re doing everything we can to get you there.”

Owen is at the center of a big, loving blended family. He lives between two households with two parents who work hard and co‑parent seamlessly, along with our partners and all of his siblings who adore him. Together, we have built a life where “it takes a village” is not just a saying – it is how we actually show up for these kids every day. Now that village is on call for hospital days, recovery days, and all the in‑between. Everyone is ready to show up; what we don’t have is a pause button for bills.

Even with health insurance and working adults in both homes, the costs of childhood cancer are already building. We’re both stepping back from work in different ways so one of us can be with Owen during treatment, and that means less income coming in even as the expenses keep growing. There are deductibles, copays, and all of the extra expenses that do not fit neatly on a single bill. At the same time, life in both households continues: there are still groceries to buy, utilities to keep on, and siblings whose routines and basic needs matter, even as our focus shifts to Owen’s treatment.

This GoFundMe is here to give our village breathing room. Your support will help us:

-Pay medical bills, copays, and treatment‑related costs as they arrive.

-Cover lost income when one of us needs to be with Owen instead of at work.

-Keep both of Owen’s households stable for all the kids who are walking through this with him.

The total cost of this journey is still unknown, but we know that over the coming months we will face expenses that we cannot fully manage alone while also giving Owen the presence and care he deserves. Your support will go directly toward closing those gaps as they appear, one bill, one pay period, and one treatment day at a time.

If you are able to donate, any amount will make a difference. If donating is not possible, simply sharing this page with your own friends and family is a powerful way to help. Pray for us. Every gift and every share help strengthen the village around Owen. Thank you for reading, for caring, and for being part of Owen’s village.