Hi! I'm Jamie. I'm a public law librarian and mom to two white kittens, named Chipmunk and Chickadee. We were living our best lives! I had quit smoking cigarettes for two years and quit drinking for a year. I had gotten a great promotion. I was working a job I loved that also helped a lot of people who really needed help. Then, the unexpected happened.

In July 2022, I went in for my first mammogram. I expected to be relieved to be in the clear, but instead, I was diagnosed with stage 3A breast cancer. My quiet little life turned into constant medical appointments for a while. In October 2022, I had a right radical mastectomy and, in December 2022, I started a rough course of chemotherapy. I'm slated for radiation treatment and reconstructive surgery later this year.

I've tried to approach this journey with gratitude, lots of very dark humor and a positive attitude. I'm thankful for my supportive family and friends. I'm thankful for my job, my supportive boss, and my awesome coworkers, who have stepped up to help. I'm thankful for my insurance. I'm thankful that I'm otherwise in good health and that I can handle the grueling treatment I'm going through. I've taken this opportunity to examine my life through a new lens so that I can learn and grow. I want to come out of the other side of cancer as a better, stronger person.

But, it's an unavoidable fact that cancer sucks. I've been through the wringer. I've lost a breast and all my hair. I've been unable to work intermittently since October and I've used up all my sick time. I have added expenses, because of being immunocompromised - like paying for Lyft when I can't take the bus, paying for delivery of groceries, ordering restaurant food when I'm too sick to cook, and having to throw out food when chemo-induced appetite loss means that I just can't stomach the food I used to love. My kittens need veterinary care that I just can't afford (Chippy has a heart murmur and Chickadee is growing very slowly). The cherry on top is that I just had to move because my beloved old cottage desperately needed renovations. Moving is expensive and stressful under normal circumstances; during chemo, it's brutal.

I was reluctant to ask for help, because I've been so fortunate in so many ways. With all my paid time off gone and my increased expenses, I'm in a tight spot financially. Now I'm asking for help to pay my rent, bills and increased expenses associated with being sick. I'm almost to the end of chemo and I need help to get through the next couple of months of treatment. I want to go back to my job helping vulnerable people in difficult, stressful situations. So, I ask you to please give to help me through my difficult time, knowing that your generosity will help me recover peacefully without having to panic about how I'm going to pay my rent.

We're all in this together. Our actions as individuals matter and those actions reverberate through the world around us. Even small gestures can make a big difference. Our kindness and willingness to help one another transform an otherwise indifferent and amoral universe into a place inhabited by beauty, justice, fairness, and compassion. Thank you for taking the time to read my story. Thank you for donating if you do.