Butch’s Battle Continues

Hi, my name is Kimberly Bowley and I am fundraising for my husband Butch and I. On February 18, 2019 my husband was diagnosed with leukemia.

It was a very difficult time for us. Friends, family, and an outpouring of community love and support helped us make it through those troubled times. By the grace of god, Butch was blessed with a perfect bone marrow match in June 2019. Rounds of chemotherapy and radiation culminating in the transplant were an everyday battle but, through support and prayer, Butch came out the other side swinging. As of today, he is gratefully still cancer free but the journey has not been without difficulty. He has unfortunately been plagued with a myriad of graft vs host symptoms as a result of his transplant.

There have been multiple hospital visits related to these complications.

On Monday November 28, 2022 Butch was admitted into the hospital again for Edema and large burn-like open sores across his midsection that have been severely hindering his quality of life. He has officially been diagnosed with a severe case of Skin GVHD. (Graft Versus Host Disease) The local hospital has been unable to get either under control and he has since been transferred to a Pittsburgh Hospital (2 hours away) for treatment in the Bone Marrow Center.

Amid the difficulties with Butchs battle, we decided to leave California and move to Pennsylvania where we felt his quality of life would be better both financially and spiritually. With the lower cost of living and the presence of locally based family, we had hopes of (if not overcoming) at least being able to tackle some of the financial burden of his treatments. After his most recent hospitalization and discovering he will need to take an extended leave from work we attempted to apply for disability and found out that there are no benefits for short term disability in Pennsylvania. This means he has absolutely no income. I am working full time as a childcare professional and our adult son is attempting to help out financially as well; but the income is not enough to cover our basic bills.

Unfortunately, they are not sure how long he will be in the hospital or if he will be able to even come home to be with his family including his 2 grandchildren for Christmas. I know times are tough right now for everyone and especially with Christmas being right around the corner. I am praying and trusting in God to support us through this time, but If anyone might be able to provide us with some help or resources we would be eternally grateful. We appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers and hope everyone’s Christmas season is filled with love and family.