I would like to ask if you could please bear with me and read to the end:

There are many things going on and I need to be as comprehensive as I can because otherwise the picture won't become clear

I was advised by friends and family to start this GoFundMe, and I am taking it to heart

I’m reaching out during a time-sensitive situation affecting my family (Me, my wife and our three young boys aged 6, 5, and 2)

I now have papillary thyroid cancer on the right side of my neck with a 5cm nodule that I had always assumed for years was just the result of a viral infection from COVID. Turns out there is also another, smaller tumor (1.4cm) next to the larger one, as well. My doctor informed me on April 15th that it is active cancer, and because of the size it may be more serious than not. Looks like late stage cancer

I had just recently gotten my CDL (Commercial Drivers License) and was getting into the position where I could finally become financially stable through truck driving, but now I will need to focus on treatment, and if I take on a new job I may not be able to maintain the insurance coverage needed for that treatment. Due to the seriousness of the condition, and the medical coordination between doctors already having started, I cannot risk interruption of coverage or copays that I cannot manage

In the months leading up to the cancer diagnosis, several separate events had already affected my situation. Some were resolved thanks to the help of many donors, while others remain challenges yet still

What was resolved: I was previously doing work servicing cell phone towers as a drive tester for a company called Scarlet Wireless in Washington state, Oregon, California, Idaho and Montana, and received help from many gracious donors in getting from Japan to America, supporting me in the transition. In terms of the cell tower work, you can see some pictures of the phone user equipment that I used for the tests in my images. Around that same period, I incurred two major vehicle repairs that were expensive and unplanned, and the contract work I had relied on did not pay as expected. I had to therefore quit the cell tower work. I decided to keep images from the repairs as well, for transparency. However, I am eternally grateful for the help I received during that whole transition and phase. It was a good and necessary transition and cell tower work served its role and purpose

What are still serious ongoing issues, and pertinent to this GoFundMe:

I am still dealing with neurological damage from Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation treatments I received in Japan in 2022. This has been ongoing and has already significantly reduced my ability to work and provide for my family, even before the cancer diagnosis. I have three baby boys to take care of

After I was forced to quit cell tower work, I returned to California, where I am originally from. What really shook me was that later, my car was stolen in Oxnard, CA in late December (police report was filed, see image), creating an additional sudden financial and logistical hit

More recently, my mother in law passed away from stage 4 breast cancer herself on February 12th, 2026. She had been battling it until very recently. Please see the image of her Seung Hwa ceremony / funeral. My youngest baby boy (His name is Will) is placing flowers on her casket. Actually, my father in law passed away in 2024 as well, separately. We honor their memory

I do not mention about my parents in law as a direct purpose for the GoFundMe, but rather to explain the comprehensive circumstances and mention that they were also a backbone for our family financially. My wife does not make enough to sustain our family by herself, and Japanese support systems are limited and insufficient. Also, we have exhausted our lending capabilities due to the recent events

There are other challenges outside of everything I mentioned so far, but again I do not want to overload this campaign description with every detail. I want to be clear and straightforward about where things stand and why help is needed right now

Despite how serious the current situation is, I do have a clear plan forward, but it will need to be implemented after cancer treatment. I obtained my CDL in March, and my plan is to transition into company truck driving once I am medically able to do so, where the structure and stability are much more reliable than the contract work I was previously doing

However, this is not something I can step into immediately due to the cancer treatment period. We need help for both cancer treatment AND to cover immediate living expenses for my family in Japan while I undergo cancer treatment and am unable to work during this transition period. My family needs me to be a provider, and right now I am not able to do that easily

I'm doing this for my children

The cancer treatment will take between 3 to 4 months at least, involving surgery, radioactive iodine and possibly chemo

The cost distribution for the living expenses that we need are as such:

Rent: 150,000 yen per month (About $1000)

Utilities: 60,000 yen per month (About $400)

Food: 130,000 yen per month (About $800)

There are also funeral costs for my mother-in-law and non-negotiable debt obligations in Japan

Upcoming cancer treatment costs including the treatment itself and recurring hormone therapy treatments for post thyroid surgery complications

This is intended as a temporary transition period, as I still plan to move into trucking once I am able to do so

I would not be asking for help like this if there were another viable option, or if I didn't have upcoming treatment costs looming, which are likely

As you can see there have been a number of challenges led up to this situation, all affecting my ability to provide for my family

Please scroll to view the images of me and my family, my car and some of the repair images, the police report for my stolen car, and other supporting context

If anybody would like further proof and verification or further information on any of the issues raised, I would be more than glad to provide it. There are a number of people who are familiar with the matters above and can vouch for my situation. If anyone wants to contact me for general communication purposes or for verification purposes, I can be contacted on Facebook, my phone number +1 (626) [phone redacted], or email [email redacted]

Any support, at any level, would mean more than I can express. Every contribution truly helps my family during this insane time, especially as cancer treatment costs appear later

And if you’re not in a position to help, I completely understand and am grateful for your time and consideration

God bless you

Emanuel Voelker