Hi. This is Dan, and we are his children writing on his behalf. To introduce you all to Dan, he has been a very active and healthy person for all of his life. We grew up witnessing both of our parents pursing their passion for health and competition, whether it was it was traveling for CrossFit competitions or us standing on the side lines at the finish line of a triathlon cheering them on. Another important thing to know about Dan is that a few years ago, he left his 30-year long career in sales and became a firefighter. He has always shared with us that he regretted not making the choice to serve his community and country at some point before beginning his career. So, at 55 years old, he went back to school and made this dream come true. Lastly, it is important to know who Dan is to our family. He met our mom about 20 years ago when she already had two children. He took us in as his own and also had another child together, and so our family was complete. He has always been a strong protector and provider for our family, who has taught all of us hard work, respect, and determination. He dreamed big for all of us, even if we failed to do so on our own.

Life changed for Dan and our family starting back in January. He started to experience horrible pain in his chest and back, and it took weeks to discover what was causing it. After a hospital stay and multiple doctor's appointments, he was given the news that one of his vertebrae was fractured. He was told to heal up, and that it will take 6-8 weeks. When 8 weeks had passed, and he had only gotten worse, our parents went back to the doctor. They found that he now had 8 fractures in his spine and was diagnosed with severe osteoporosis. They were turned away by the doctor and told "Go home and just try not to break any more bones." Both of my parents were left feeling frustrated, lost, and hopeless. Dan had gone from a strong and active head of the household, to barely being able to stand. The pain was and has continued to be unbearable with no rest. After some further labs and advice from others, we found out that it was not osteoporosis, but cancer in his plasma that was causing every bone, from his shoulders to his hips, to be weak and brittle. We also had found out that it was not 8 fractures but 10.

Dan was in the hospital for 9 days after his diagnosis, and he had surgery to repair 6 of his fractures, but in the process his sternum and ribs were fractured as well. He has begun chemo and is back home now, but the journey continues to be difficult. He is still in a lot of pain and very vulnerable to fractures because the affected bones are 80% cancer. The road is also difficult because he can no longer work, and since he needs full-time care, our mom has had to sacrifice a lot in her career as well.

With all of that said, some financial support would help relieve some of the burden that our parents have had to take on suddenly. They have always been smart in their saving, and they have had fulfilling careers that have supported our family well, but no one could have prepared us for this. The expenses are steep because of long hospital stays, extremely costly treatments, surgeries, and much more. The number of digits included in the price of cancer is unbelievable. So, any sort of donation to help our parents and family would be more than appreciated.

To wrap up, Dan is an extremely strong person, and we are keeping faith that he will recover and come out on the other end even stronger. Thank you for taking the time to read about this difficult time and for your consideration!