Help my mom with bullshit cancer costs
Donation protected
Welcome to the crowdfunding page for Jennifer Smith Mullen’s cancer treatment. Like so many others across the country right now, Jennifer has insurance but her share of the expenses is beyond her reach. Her husband and the rest of her family are working to find resources for her - but also like so many others, the expenses aren’t limited to the initial medical care. Her job offers no benefits, so her time off will be largely unpaid. (The state of NJ does offer some options, but those will be very limited) Beyond this, the ripple effect on her ability to work, the expected hit to her financial security, her energy level during and after treatment, her studies (remaining a student is important to her) - these are all things we can expect to be drawn out for years. By helping to defray some of her costs, we hope Jennifer will get back to living her life, adjusting to her “new normal,” as they say, and get on with the business of healing.
As of this writing, claims have totalled in the tens of thousands, before any treatment has begun. She expects to have surgery late November to early December. The goal amount here is pretty arbitrary - we have no way of knowing yet what the costs will be.
Jenn doesn't use Facebook, so her online reach is very limited. Every share on social media will help. Please consider posting a link to this campaign on your page.
This page was created by her amazing daughter Lily. Below is Lily’s statement:
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I moved out of my parents’ house at 19 going on 20 in the hopes of being able to make a new life in Olympia, WA and eventually go to college out here. Adjusting to living apart was very hard for both of us, I’m her only child and we were always very close. A lot of the time she really was my closest friend (but not in that weird dance mom way but she does like to dance). Eventually, we got used to it, but it’s still really hard having such distance between us. Sometimes I really miss her so much, I can’t stand it. It’s been a little over a year since I moved away, and I was able to start school this fall quarter.
In August, I got married to my roommate who I’d been semi-secretly dating since March. When I told my mom that we were getting engaged I was expecting a big reaction, or for at least one of my parents to tell me I was being irresponsible. But she didn’t say anything of the sort. We immediately made plans for she and my dad to come attend my courthouse wedding in August. It wasn’t a big deal to me that I was getting married, and she was okay with that. Something I’ve always loved about her is that she never made me feel like I was supposed to be or think a certain way.
I got to spend a week with my mom for my wedding. She let me wear her wedding dress (a red plaid summer dress), and she made my wife and I flower bouquets by hand. I didn’t want to throw them out. I must have left them in a vase on our kitchen counter for months.
10 days after my wedding, I got a call from my mom telling me that she had been diagnosed with the beginnings of breast cancer. I didn’t really process it then and even though it has been months since then I’m not really processing it until just now writing this. The thing that really gets me about this is that it’s so unfair. Cancer is generally unfair, but I’m biased and I like my mom a lot.
My mom was always very concerned with fairness, and I grew up with the mindset that it was okay to be stubborn about fairness. I’m really grateful to have been raised to be able to acknowledge it and be angry when things aren’t fair. It’s a really popular idea that maturity means taking everything life gives you in stride and not complaining, but I was always able to come to my mom and tell her that shit just sucked real hard. So it really just sucks that this is happening to her of all people, because all of it is so unfair, especially the sheer bureaucracy of it all. I don’t want her to have to subject herself to all of this.
As of this writing, claims have totalled in the tens of thousands, before any treatment has begun. She expects to have surgery late November to early December. The goal amount here is pretty arbitrary - we have no way of knowing yet what the costs will be.
Jenn doesn't use Facebook, so her online reach is very limited. Every share on social media will help. Please consider posting a link to this campaign on your page.
This page was created by her amazing daughter Lily. Below is Lily’s statement:
_______________________________________________________
I moved out of my parents’ house at 19 going on 20 in the hopes of being able to make a new life in Olympia, WA and eventually go to college out here. Adjusting to living apart was very hard for both of us, I’m her only child and we were always very close. A lot of the time she really was my closest friend (but not in that weird dance mom way but she does like to dance). Eventually, we got used to it, but it’s still really hard having such distance between us. Sometimes I really miss her so much, I can’t stand it. It’s been a little over a year since I moved away, and I was able to start school this fall quarter.
In August, I got married to my roommate who I’d been semi-secretly dating since March. When I told my mom that we were getting engaged I was expecting a big reaction, or for at least one of my parents to tell me I was being irresponsible. But she didn’t say anything of the sort. We immediately made plans for she and my dad to come attend my courthouse wedding in August. It wasn’t a big deal to me that I was getting married, and she was okay with that. Something I’ve always loved about her is that she never made me feel like I was supposed to be or think a certain way.
I got to spend a week with my mom for my wedding. She let me wear her wedding dress (a red plaid summer dress), and she made my wife and I flower bouquets by hand. I didn’t want to throw them out. I must have left them in a vase on our kitchen counter for months.
10 days after my wedding, I got a call from my mom telling me that she had been diagnosed with the beginnings of breast cancer. I didn’t really process it then and even though it has been months since then I’m not really processing it until just now writing this. The thing that really gets me about this is that it’s so unfair. Cancer is generally unfair, but I’m biased and I like my mom a lot.
My mom was always very concerned with fairness, and I grew up with the mindset that it was okay to be stubborn about fairness. I’m really grateful to have been raised to be able to acknowledge it and be angry when things aren’t fair. It’s a really popular idea that maturity means taking everything life gives you in stride and not complaining, but I was always able to come to my mom and tell her that shit just sucked real hard. So it really just sucks that this is happening to her of all people, because all of it is so unfair, especially the sheer bureaucracy of it all. I don’t want her to have to subject herself to all of this.
Fundraising team (2)
Lillian Smith Mullen
Organizer
Highland Park, NJ
Amy Oo
Team member
