Support Sheri - My mom

My mom, Sheri Reichard, is a single parent raising me and my sister.  She has always been there for my sister and me.  She makes sure we are always smiling and happy. She's throws us the best birthday parties and is trying to give us a good childhood.  My mother raised us to be considerate, to stay postive and kind to others. She volunteers all the time.  When ever we see a homeless person on the side of the street, my mom will buy food for them.  One time I asked my mom why she does that.  She said, "What goes around comes around.  If we bless others, then we will be blessed in return someday."  My mom lost most of her hearing 8 years ago, but that didn't stop her.  We learned sign language and now we can communicate with the deaf, and bring smiles to their faces when we sign with them.   My mom is a school counselor. She always puts a smile on the kids faces and never gives up on them. She tries to promote kindness every day.  Every morning she greats them with high-fives and hugs, and she knows every kid by name, well almost. She loved working with kids everyday, but she had to stop working when she started chemo, which devestated her. She misses her students terribly and always calls to get updates. In July she found a lump.  She went to the doctor for a mammogram and ultrasound.  She got a letter back saying it was cyst and there was no evidence of cancer.  We were so relieved.  When she went to get the cyst drained, the doctor said he had to switch to a biopsy because what he was seeing was not a cyst. A week later, on September 1st, he told my mom she had Stage 2 breast cancer.   I was playing in my first school volleyball game that day, she sat and cheered me on even when she was sad inside.  After the game, she broke the news to me that she was diagnosed with breast cancer.  I was scared. My mom tells us not to worry she will make every thing work somehow.  She's trying to stay positive and not show concern, but I know her paychecks are stopping in January.  My sister and I are both too young to provide income for us.                         from -- Sara Reichard I'm Amy Brickson, Sheri's sister, I would like to say a few things to help Sara start this for her mom.  Sheri is absolutely the most giving person I know.  She has always been there for me when I needed help when my kids were young and even to this day she's always there to help me. She is so talented and creative and handy too. There is not anything she's not willing to do to help others.  I have felt like I have never been able to repay her for all she's done for me. I was able to go to her last doctors appointment, she has been so positive and was really disappointed when she got her lab work back and her numbers had really gone down.  The chemo is taking it's toll on her blood, she is neutropenic and really susceptible to infection. She was really hoping she could work out of a private office at school but the oncologist said absolutelty not.  Sheri rarely missed work and had a lot of sick days accrued, she also has Long Term Disability insurance, however, she has to wait  90 days after her last sick day (December 11th) for it to begin.  She is going to have to  continue paying all her living expenses, medical copays/out-of-pocket expenses in addition to paying for Cobra health insurance without any income for 3 months. She tries not to let the stress of supporting her family show, but I know she is and stress can suppress her immune system even more.  Sheri has 12 more weeks of chemo followed by a double mastectomy and a hysterectomy.  Her life totally changed with no warning. Everything she enjoyed doing, working with children, taking her girls out and about, going to volleyball tournaments has been taken away from her. I was devastated when she was told she should not partake in Thanksgiving festivities this year.  Sheri needs your financial support to get through this rough time.   Thank you for your consideration in supporting my sister and her girls.  Remember when you bless others a blessing will be returned to you. If you cannot donate money, please send up a prayer. Also, please share with your friends and encourage them to share with their friends.... the kindness of strangers is a powerful thing! Thank you so much for your support!