Supporting Carlos Dia's Family & Funeral Costs

(Ninong - Godfather & Ninang - Godmother)

Hi My name is Jamila, I have set up a GoFundMe page for my Ninong Carlos Dia’s Family:

Ninang Doris Dia, my best friend/cousin, Alyssa Dia Ky, my cousin Karl Dia, and my Goddaughters, Kaylie 6 years old & Kaleia 2 years old.

My Ninong Carlos, passed away on Fri January 19, 2024 after a long battle of cancer. He is survived by his wife, daughter, son and 2 granddaughters.

As they were able to cover most of the medical costs & bills throughout his treatments. It hurts for me not to be able to help them with all the financial needs they need. So I'm reaching out to our community and wanted to help raise money for funeral costs and bills.

With funeral costs, Ninang Doris was able to set that up a while back and was paying monthly for it.

After speaking with the funeral home they had mentioned that the full payment is due upfront before being able to move forward with the funeral.

The costs is about $19,000. With Ninang Doris being on unpaid leave since July 2023 to care for Ninong Carlos and Alyssa getting laid off in Aug 2023, I wanted to reach out to see who would be able to help them cover some of the costs and some bills as they try to navigate through these next few months. Any amount of donations is extremely appreciated and very helpful. And even if you are unable to donate,sharing our story is another way of helping out. No amount is too little if we can all come together❤️

My Ninong was fighting cancer since 2009.

He was diagnosed with cirrhosis & cancer and was not able to go back to work due to his condition. He was in need of a liver transplant and after 7 years of waiting he finally found a match in 2016. The transplant was a success. But In 2017, the doctors found that a cancer cell had metastasized in his spine. He was able to get 2 successful surgeries done in his spine in 2018.

And from 2018-2022 was a time of weekly MRIs, CT scans, radiations, multiple medication changes, insulin, blood draws, and doctor visits. My Ninang Doris, his wife, always took time off from work to assist him with his visits. During those years, Alyssa had her first Daughter, Kaylie, and Ninong was the one that helped take care of Kaylie while her parents were working. Alyssa then had her 2nd daughter, Kaleia, in 2021. When Alyssa had to go back to work after maternity leave Ninong was already going through some pain in his left arm and was not able to watch his grandchildren like he did before.

Even though he was going through some pain and cancer, Ninong did what he could to help his family out. He was the one who always made sure everyone was fed in the family, cooking dinners most of the time, made sure all the bills were paid on time, and spent as much time with his grandchildren and family.

It wasn't until early 2023 that his pain got worse and got the news that his cancer had spread through his spine near his throat and that he needed another surgery. He was able to get surgery in March 2023, the surgeons were able to get most of the tumor out but left some remnants as it was too close to the brain. If removed there would be a high chance of him suffering from a stroke.

His wife, Ninang Doris, was able to go on leave for 3 months with the help of EDD to care for his recovery. After his surgery it became hard for him to swallow and do his everyday daily tasks. She cared for him everyday making him purée food, made sure he took his medication on time, assist him with his daily needs.

It wasn't until July of 2023 where he passes out in the dining room and they had to call 911.

They did another CT scan and it had revealed that more cancer tumors had spread to his new liver and his lungs. Chemotherapy was an option, but Carlos needed to gain strength in his throat to take the chemotherapy pills that were needed to be taken whole. At this point, his daughter, Alyssa had taken time off from work also thanks to EDD to spend time with him and to help in caring for her dad.

He had become weak and was hospitalized due to multiple reasons caused by the cancers. He came home bedridden as he had lost strength and mobility in both his legs and his left arm and hand. Ninang also ran out of EDD after 3 months and went on unpaid leave until today.

Soon after that, due to the economic circumstances we are all facing in August 2023, Alyssa was laid off from her job. Despite all that her family was going through, Looking back at it now she told me its has been a blessing in disguise as this allowed her to fully focus on caring for her dad and assist her mom. As there were bills to pay, she still tried to find ways to make income. She started a small business while caring for her dad. As it's just starting off, she still needed to find more ways to make income. She was also juggling her time trying to be there for her mom, dad, and her kids so it became difficult for her to focus on the business she started.

3 days before Christmas Ninong had developed a cough that could not be suppressed and was hospitalized. Phlegm had built up in his lungs due to the food that was trapped and the tumors. He was not able to eat because he couldn't swallow without choking. The doctors had first recommended he get a feeding tube through the stomach which a surgery was then scheduled after Christmas. But because he was already so weak his doctors cancelled the surgery and said his body needed to focus on recovering and not recover because of another surgery. So he had to get a feeding tube through his nose to get the nutrients he needed.

While in the hospital his doctors confirmed that his cancer had grew bigger in his lungs and spine. After they all agreed that the doctors could not further help him, they told him and his wife to go home and to live the rest of his days with family and friends. Ninong was discharged on Dec 31st. He came home with a feeding tube through the nose, an oxygen tank to supply more air, and little mobility in his right arm.

At the start of 2024, Day and night Ninang and Alyssa cared for him taking turns on staying by his side while holding his hands. Ninong could barely speak due to the feeding tube down his nose and was not able to move his right hand but could move his right arm. Ninang Doris had to use a suction machine down his throat regularly to ensure he wouldn’t aspirate on any liquid including his saliva.

By his second week at home Ninong Carlos lost mobility in his right arm and would speak less. I spoke to Alyssa frequently knowing they were trying to spend their last moments together. The kids kaleia and Kaylie would also spend as much time with their grandpa. They were all able to say their last words to him.

By week 3, Ninong lost the ability to speak, could hear but would not respond, and would have his eyes half open for the next couple days.

On Friday, January 19, 2023, his siblings came to visit at 1:30pm. After talking to him for an hour, He passed away peacefully in his sleep taking his last breaths, finally closing his eyes. He was surrounded by his wife, daughter, and siblings.

His son Karl, his son in law Kevin, his grandchildren Sky, Kaylie, and Kaleia, his stepson John, his daughter in law Joanne, and his best friend Leah came later that day to say their final goodbyes. He was just shy of his 67th birthday on January 27th.

Ninong Carlos lived a beautiful life filled with love and laughs. He was a fighter and despite all of the medical issues he was going through he still showed up as the strong Husband, Father and Grandfather. Through his journey, he made sure to show the joy in life and God to everyone. He lead all our family party prayers and even when he was hurting, he still brightened up the day by making those around him laugh. His dad jokes will live on.

Back in 1988, When my parents first moved to the USA. Ninong Carlos and Ninang was their very first friends. Ninang was the one who helped my mom give birth to me, cut my cord and gave me my name.

They are family to us and I've seen them fight through a lot of battles. What I've learned is that no matter what you're going through still persevere through and God will do the rest and that there is still beauty in the battles you fight. Ninong was able to see both his grandchildren be born, spent lots of time with his son Karl and care for his family in the daily needs at home.

Carlos, we will miss you dearly. You can finally rest and stop fighting your battle. No more needles, no more surgeries, no more radiation, no more medication. Just joy from here on out. We love you. ❤️

Thank you for taking the time to read. We really appreciate your help. We are praying for you all. God bless you.