****Before reading, I do want to preface that there is one photo that could be viewed as quite graphic but trust that it is only to highlight the gravity of John's history.
No one knows selflessness like my mother-in-law, Sharon Hancock. She is a nurse, a daughter, a loving wife, a mother of three, and the best grandmother to three grandchildren. Her love isn't flashy, isn't always spoken out loud, but the people around her know that her actions are the biggest testament of her love and care and this greatly outweighs any form of proclamation, if anything, it speaks louder.
Sharon's unwavering resilience has held her and her family together through many trials, like the one in 2013 when her husband, John Hancock, faced an onslaught of illnesses. John went in for an appendectomy and the following day he had a colostomy for diverticulitis. Three days after, he suffered a Dehiscence with evisceration meaning his incision broke open and his intestines spilled out. John had to be resuscitated and was rushed to emergency surgery. He then spent 15 days in the ICU on a ventilator and during his stay, he suffered Sepsis with ARDS and nearly died. When he finally woke up, he couldn't move and both him and Sharon learned that he had suffered an Anoxic stroke at some point during those 15 days; this resulted in chronic nausea and vomiting except that John doesn't exactly have the ability to vomit because of a surgery that he had in his 20's to treat a precancerous condition which put a twist in his esophagus causing him to wretch severely. On top of everything, he has a Parkinsonian tremor, balance issues, trouble with dehydration, and debilitating headaches. He cannot drive and he is permanently disabled. For the past 6 years, Sharon and John have seen several doctors and specialists but still, his symptoms persist.
While I have only seen the aftermath of John's medical history, Sharon, on the other hand, has been with him through all of it and I have seen firsthand how she goes above and beyond for him. Both of them have managed to push through every complication throughout the years, but even more so, Sharon has taken on the role of being John's caretaker and the sole supporter of their household. Both her work and home life has quite literally been about her dedicating herself to people in need and she has dealt with all of it so well that even I believed her to be something of a super human. She is strong through and through. However, life can be cruel, it isn't always fair and even the strongest, kindest people can have the rug pulled out from under the them and that's exactly what happened in late July of this year.
Sharon was diagnosed with Stage 3 Breast Cancer. All of us were devastated after hearing the news, but I can only imagine how this has affected her. So far the treatment plan laid out for her would be 20 weeks of chemotherapy followed by surgery and radiation. Such an aggressive treatment plan will most definitely make things physically harder for her. While Sharon has a team of professionals as well as friends and family to hold her hand and help her through this grueling process, there is still the matter of bills to be paid. Sharon has only been at her new job for 7 months and has accrued less than 2 weeks of paid time off and while John receives $1078 monthly from disability, it is not enough to keep them afloat. She not only has a long road ahead of her but a costly one at that and my hope is to help alleviate the financial strain in any way possible.
I have every reason to believe that Sharon will soldier on as best as she can and I will most definitely post updates here as I learn more and as she undergoes treatment.
The funds raised here will go towards Sharon's treatments/uninsured medical costs, household bills while she is unable to work and whatever else she may need to help her through her recovery. No amount is too small and can help make a huge difference.
Thank you for reading through her story. She will need all the love, support, and prayers during this difficult time.
No one knows selflessness like my mother-in-law, Sharon Hancock. She is a nurse, a daughter, a loving wife, a mother of three, and the best grandmother to three grandchildren. Her love isn't flashy, isn't always spoken out loud, but the people around her know that her actions are the biggest testament of her love and care and this greatly outweighs any form of proclamation, if anything, it speaks louder.
Sharon's unwavering resilience has held her and her family together through many trials, like the one in 2013 when her husband, John Hancock, faced an onslaught of illnesses. John went in for an appendectomy and the following day he had a colostomy for diverticulitis. Three days after, he suffered a Dehiscence with evisceration meaning his incision broke open and his intestines spilled out. John had to be resuscitated and was rushed to emergency surgery. He then spent 15 days in the ICU on a ventilator and during his stay, he suffered Sepsis with ARDS and nearly died. When he finally woke up, he couldn't move and both him and Sharon learned that he had suffered an Anoxic stroke at some point during those 15 days; this resulted in chronic nausea and vomiting except that John doesn't exactly have the ability to vomit because of a surgery that he had in his 20's to treat a precancerous condition which put a twist in his esophagus causing him to wretch severely. On top of everything, he has a Parkinsonian tremor, balance issues, trouble with dehydration, and debilitating headaches. He cannot drive and he is permanently disabled. For the past 6 years, Sharon and John have seen several doctors and specialists but still, his symptoms persist.
While I have only seen the aftermath of John's medical history, Sharon, on the other hand, has been with him through all of it and I have seen firsthand how she goes above and beyond for him. Both of them have managed to push through every complication throughout the years, but even more so, Sharon has taken on the role of being John's caretaker and the sole supporter of their household. Both her work and home life has quite literally been about her dedicating herself to people in need and she has dealt with all of it so well that even I believed her to be something of a super human. She is strong through and through. However, life can be cruel, it isn't always fair and even the strongest, kindest people can have the rug pulled out from under the them and that's exactly what happened in late July of this year.
Sharon was diagnosed with Stage 3 Breast Cancer. All of us were devastated after hearing the news, but I can only imagine how this has affected her. So far the treatment plan laid out for her would be 20 weeks of chemotherapy followed by surgery and radiation. Such an aggressive treatment plan will most definitely make things physically harder for her. While Sharon has a team of professionals as well as friends and family to hold her hand and help her through this grueling process, there is still the matter of bills to be paid. Sharon has only been at her new job for 7 months and has accrued less than 2 weeks of paid time off and while John receives $1078 monthly from disability, it is not enough to keep them afloat. She not only has a long road ahead of her but a costly one at that and my hope is to help alleviate the financial strain in any way possible.
I have every reason to believe that Sharon will soldier on as best as she can and I will most definitely post updates here as I learn more and as she undergoes treatment.
The funds raised here will go towards Sharon's treatments/uninsured medical costs, household bills while she is unable to work and whatever else she may need to help her through her recovery. No amount is too small and can help make a huge difference.
Thank you for reading through her story. She will need all the love, support, and prayers during this difficult time.
Organizer and beneficiary
Sharon Hancock
Beneficiary