Hey all,

Casey was diagnosed with breast cancer toward the end of August. What we thought and hoped was a case of being a typical and annoying trial of womanhood turned out to be what is, in the medical world, called invasive ductal carcinoma -stage two, triple negative.

If you aren't a doctor - this means that Casey caught it early and the odds are highly in her favor for a full recovery!

Triple negative also means that the cancer is aggressive- and treatment is -in turn - aggresive and a real drag. Chemotherapy is the first line of defense because of the quick growth this cancer has been known for. The hope is that if it's sneaked it's way into any lymph nodes or her blood stream/other undetected parts of her body, chemo will take care of it before it has the chance to metastisize.

Today (9/30) she underwent her first round of at least twelve weeks of triple doses of chemo to try to eliminate the spread and the tumor. Sometime around the first few months of the year she'll have an additional scan to see if there is enough progress to avoid surgery and radiation. She'll continue immunotherapy until the fall of 2026 to boost her system.

While Casey would absolutely groan at the idea of a GoFundMe, the truth is that cancer treatment is expensive and there is zero way to avoid it. And while she'd be even more pissed about anyone feeling sorry for her, enough of you have reached out that I did want to share a way to give if you so choose. She obviously needs help and she is getting it from all of you and her medical team (thank you to infinity).

Ultimately, Casey is more than this diagnosis. As are ALL of you and our families that have had to battle or are currently battling cancer.

She is a beast of an advocate for education and food security and has built a career and life championing those causes. She's a writer, she's an organizer, she's a teacher, and - as of late- she's a hair stylist (gave herself that cute pixie!) She's continuing to work between treatments at an amazing non-profit with an incredible team, and moonlights in supporting roles for other areas of community that are underserved or overlooked.

If I could channel her right now I know she'd say, "go vote, stand up for your neighbor, end food insecurity, fight for equal rights, support mental health, and listen to a podcast about the vastness of the universe and physics and the power of community - that's what'll help me." And she's right.

So...feel free to donate here for Casey's medical journey OR donate to your most favorite community cause serving those who need it most and send her a quick note about it (caseymgordon at gmail dot com).

Wishing you a day of peace, some quick wins, and finding joy in the small stuff. Love to you all!