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Support for Kris

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Many of you know my wonderful sister Kris, who is the definition of a true fighter!  Not only is she is an amazing mother to my loving nephew and niece (Cameron age 10 and Kacey age 8), but Kris is a 3 time cancer survivor.  She fought an unbelievable fight and beat it 3 times!  She was diagnosed for the first time in 1998 with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, in 2006 with Squamous Cell Carcinoma on her tongue and lymph nodes in her neck and then again in 2010 with Squamous Cell Carcinoma in her neck. 

Unfortunately because of all of the massive amounts of chemo and radiation, the cancer treatments have left her unable to work and with a great deal of medical issues that she now has to live with.   Just to name a few, she’s dealing with a paralyzed vocal cord, a feeding tube because she is not allowed to take anything by mouth, a frozen right shoulder which she has very minimal use of (and she is right handed), very limited mobility of her neck and now a trach.  Since Memorial Day, she has been in and out of the hospital 9 times (with only a few days home here or there between hospital stays), for chronic aspiration pneumonia.  The last time over the summer was the worst, when her breathing got so bad and her lungs were giving out, something had to be done.  A trach was always her worst nightmare and LAST resort.  Unfortunately it got to that point this summer where it was the only choice that she had to live.  She decided to have a trach put in, which now allows her to breath.  She spent over a week in the ICU and then was in rehab for 2 ½ weeks.  

Thankfully she is now home with her kids!  But life is VERY difficult for her.  My parents are currently living with her and the kids and I am there helping as much as I can.  She is getting daily therapies to regain her strength and to learn to live with the trach, but she still has a very long road ahead of her.

Her insurance company unfortunately does not cover all of the medical supplies that she needs to live at home with her kids.   It’s not possible for her, or the kids, to carry her feeding pole with pump, suction machine and humidification machine upstairs at night and back downstairs in the morning.  But the insurance company will not pay for a second set to make life “manageable” for her.

My family does not like to ask for help, but this is one time we feel we need to.  We would do anything for Kris.  People continually ask how they can help?!?!?  This is one way that you can help!  Any amount of money, no matter how small the amount, would help Kris be able to buy some of these medical supplies and also put towards the thousands of dollars of medical bills that are just piling up. 

On behalf of my entire family, we thank you!  We would do ANYTHING for Kris, and I know so many of you feel the same way.

Kris is a FIGHTER and I have no doubt that she will continue to fight…….

Love,
Jen Schmidlin
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Donations 

  • Anonymous
    • $50 
    • 9 yrs
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Organizer

Jen Ziegler Schmidlin
Organizer
Natick, MA

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