Laurie’s Recovery Fund

We have created this GoFundMe Page to help Laurie cancel cancer. No amount is too small.

A simple act of kindness can ripple out and create an ocean of blessings!

For those who do not know Laurie, she is a single mother to 6 wonderful children and a grandmother (Wawi) to 4 beautiful grandsons. She is a daughter (and caretaker to her 92-year-old father), a sister, a hero to her children, a prayer partner, a good friend to many & always the life of the party. She is an absolute blessing.

Laurie has had her fair share of trials. Some may think of them as impossible situations, but with her faith and determination, she has conquered them all. We have no doubt that she WILL also conquer this giant in front of her as David conquered Goliath in faith and might.

Laurie & her two youngest girls, Tatum & Abigail

Laurie’s Situation (Shared by her daughter Caitlin)

“At the young age of 52, my mother was starting to feel tired and melancholy all the time. She had hardly been able to eat or drink for nearly three weeks. (Anyone who knows my mom knows she is a foodie!) After numerous doctor visits, lab tests, & exams, everything “looked” normal. We knew that wasn’t the truth. I had seen my mother stop smiling while doing the things that once brought her joy, as it was replaced with a cracked grin held in pain. As the 3rd week of minimal eating came to a close, she was given various misdiagnoses. A trusted friend (her OBGYN) finally said ENOUGH and sent her straight to the hospital for further testing. After a series of new tests, scans, and ultrasounds were performed, she was diagnosed with biliary obstruction. She was then transferred to another hospital in San Antonio to undergo an ERCP procedure. A temporary stent was placed, and she was told it would be removed in 3-6 months. We were so relieved to have some answers and a solution finally. A massive sigh of relief turned into a considerable breath held when the attending physician told us that my mother’s liver enzymes & bilirubin levels started to climb (yet again) steadily, and her pancreas and liver were enlarged. All signs that this was serious and she was in danger.

On August 9, 2022, my mother was taken into surgery to undergo a 4 1/2 hr exploratory laparotomy biliary bypass, reconstruction of the common bile duct along with the resection of a choledochal (benign) cyst. Post operation, the surgeon explained that this was one of the most challenging and lengthy operations he has performed in a very long time. After being hospitalized for almost a month, my mom was released. We were excited to have her recovering at home. She was still in pain with an incision from her sternum to just below her belly button. In her own words, she said with a smile, “I feel better than I have in years!” With a long road to recovery, she was in great spirits and ready to do whatever it took to recover in haste for the upcoming holidays.

Two days post-release, she received perhaps one of the most daunting calls she has ever received. I watched my mother’s expression turn with a furrowed brow as she wrote down the information being delivered on the other end. She looked at me and said, “the Dr. just called with my pathology report (which was initially negative & clear), and it came back positive for moderately differentiated bile duct adenocarcinoma.

Bile. Duct. CANCER.

This diagnosed cancer is very rare. (Less than 1% of all cancers) From a medical standpoint - the most silent, aggressive, and lethal. Even with this information, we knew we would do EVERYTHING we could to cancel this cancer. Both in prayer and by the leading of a trusted surgeon.

Laurie’s Current Plan of Action

Laurie has begun her journey to fight this wretched disease.

She has consulted 2 of the best Oncologists in San Antonio, Tx, along with three surgeons in and outside of San Antonio who specialize in hepato-pancreatic-biliary surgeries. She is scheduled for a Whipple surgery on September 21, 2022. Laurie has had new scans and blood work drawn as of September 7, 2022. Her surgeon has informed her that this surgery will take approximately 4-6 hours due to her previous surgery being six weeks prior and her incision still healing.

The Whipple procedure is a MAJOR & EXTENSIVE surgery most often performed to remove cancerous tumors from the bile duct that connects to the head of the pancreas. Because this surgery is being performed on the heel of her previous surgery, her recovery will be vastly extensive and limiting.

Laurie’s Financial Need

Over the next seven months, Laurie will be on a strenuous journey to heal physically and CANCEL THIS CANCER.

She’s an absolute fighter and WILL beat this!

Even with her fortitude, her financial well-being will be temporarily strained due to her medical bills accruing during her long recovery. She is self-employed and the sole provider for her young children.

These GoFundMe donations will be utilized to tackle the mountain of medical bills she is and will be accruing while beating cancer. Currently, out-of-pocket medical bills and other expenses are expected to exceed $200,000.00. Any amount helps.

Please keep Laurie and her family in your thoughts and prayers.

Laurie, as a friend… (shared by Michelle)

If you know Laurie, you know she doesn’t ask for help easily, but she is ALWAYS the first to offer support or assistance to those around her. Laurie provides service even to those she doesn’t know; all she needs is to hear of someone in need, and she will give a hand, provide prayers, extend an ear or shoulder…or (some people’s favorite) make and deliver food! And, it is always genuine, sincere, and comes from her big heart.

Well, here’s our chance to give back to Laurie so she may tackle this challenge named Cancer by allowing her to recuperate with some peace of mind. As many of you know, she is self-employed and the sole provider of her children. She has a long road after surgery of post-operative care, and rehabilitation. It’s expected that she won’t be able to return to work for approximately a year. Keep in mind that while she has just begun this cancer journey simultaneously, it has all been happening so fast, and her bills have already started to stack up due to (above mentioned) prior surgeries, procedures and recovery time. Donations received through this GoFundMe would help ease her already challenging recovery with the knowledge that she can also worry a little less about her financial recovery.

Again, no amount is too small; please…donate, share her story and shower her with prayers, love, encouragement and good vibes. And, please keep her family in your thoughts; this is a challenge for all of them.

Know that your kindness and compassion have a healing effect.

Laurie & Michelle. Childhood friends!