I've started this GoFundMe on behalf of and with permission from my stepbrother, Stephen Bright.

On Sunday, October 12, Stephen Bright along with his wife Ana Lisa and their sons Jeremiah and Cameron, flew to Alexandria, Virginia to visit family. On October 14, Stephen went to the Emergency Room with severe abdominal pain. After being inpatient for 2 days, he ended up needing major abdominal surgery on October 16.

As of today, October 26, Stephen is still in the hospital facing another setback in his recovery. He hasn't eaten any solid food in 2 weeks and drinking water has led to the discovery of some complications. His medical team is optimistically waiting a few more days to see if this recent setback will resolve itself. If not, he will require another surgical procedure.

Needless to say this has been very stressful on Stephen and his family as they now face their 3rd week in Virginia. There is no timeline for when the family will be able to return to their home in San Angelo.

For 10 years, Stephen has owned and operated a food truck business called Semper Fresh Kettle Corn. October is the busiest month of the year for his business. By the end of the month, he will have had to cancel over 15 events that were scheduled before this medical emergency. This will result in a loss of thousands of dollars of income. In addition, Stephen works on Goodfellow Air Force Base maintaining the dormitories and is currently not receiving any pay due to the government shutdown. In addition, due to DOGE cuts from earlier this year, his job is set to terminate completely at the beginning of December. He has plans to start a new business but this situation and recovery means a much slower start for Stephen. While Ana Lisa balances assisting Stephen in the hospital, and caring for their sons, she clearly is not able to work her shifts in the occupational department at Shannon Hospital.

If you know Stephen and Ana Lisa, you know they are an incredibly generous couple and they are raising their sons to also be givers. Please consider a donation towards easing the financial burden of out of state medical care and loss of income.

We will post updates on Stephen's medical condition here as more information becomes available.