Hi, my name is Jennifer Henn. I moved to Germantown Hills when I was in 7th grade. I had Mr. Garey as a teacher there and instantly became friends with his oldest daughter Lindsey. I have remained friends with Lindsey all these years later. After I spoke with her about her stepdad I felt as a community we needed to come together to help Mr. Garey & his wife during this difficult time.

For the past 27 years, Russ Garey, also known as Coach Garey, has been dedicating his time to the Germantown Hills community. In 1998, he took a teaching position at GHMS as a 7th-grade math teacher, leaving behind a 13-year teaching and coaching career in District 150. Since then, he has poured his heart into teaching math and history, coaching hundreds of student-athletes in basketball, and driving countless trips to and from sporting events as a trusted bus driver. Coach Garey's impact is undeniable. He has been inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame—a banner recognizing this honor hangs in the GHMS gym. He also has won IESA Coach of the Year 3 times. More than his accolades, though, Coach Garey is known for his quiet acts of kindness—offering rides, providing extra help in math, and even discreetly purchasing necessities for students in need.

 

Now, Coach Garey needs our help. On Sunday September 21 he took his wife Vicky to Las Vegas to celebrate her 60th birthday. Tuesday, he started to ask silly questions which Vicky thought he was trying to be funny. Slowly, the questions got a little stranger and by Wednesday evening he could not remember how to get back to their room at the timeshare. Since they were leaving early the next day, she decided to get him on the airplane and bring him home to get looked at. Upon landing she took him to the hospital in Peoria where they did a STAT CT scan. That CT scan unfortunately didn't show anything that was going to be helpful diagnosing him. By this time, he had no recollection of ever being in Las Vegas, what year it was, what day of the week it was or where he was exactly and how he got there. 

 

That evening he was admitted so the next morning they could run additional tests. Friday morning, they were able rule out the fact that he did not have a stroke, an aneurysm, blood clot or tumor with labs, MRIs, and a spinal tap. Without sharing too much information, he would ask the same question every two minutes because he forgot or was unaware that he already had asked it.

 

After several days of being in Peoria the team there was able to get him transferred to the University of Chicago on Friday October 3. There they have repeated several tests that were originally done in Peoria. Unfortunately, at the moment they all have come back negative. They have ruled out that the swelling is due to an infection or bacteria. Several more tests are pending, and a special MRI was ordered that has a stronger magnetic field. Hopefully, this will provide some insight about what is happening in his brain.

On Tuesday October 8 after many tests, he had a brain biopsy to help find answers.

They now received the heartbreaking news that Coach Garey has glioma, a form of brain cancer. They don’t yet know the exact type or stage, but the neurosurgeon told us it has spread throughout his brain. They will know more once the pathology results are back.

The plan is for Coach Garey to come home on Saturday for a couple of weeks to rest and be surrounded by family and friends. In two weeks, he’ll return to Chicago to meet with a team of specialists and begin making a treatment plan.

If you know Coach Garey, you know he’s the most positive, kind, and loving person.

Whether you know Coach Garey, his wife, their 5 kids (Lindsey, Jenna, Derek, Jake, or Skylar) or 7 grandkids (Deon, Ella, Lana, John, Kobe, Patrick, and Luke) please consider donating. The last thing we all need when going through this is to worry about finances. If you're unable to give financially, your prayers, thoughts, and shares are just as powerful and deeply appreciated.

There was also a meal train created to help lighten Vicky's load during this time.

Meal Train -- link