My name is Craig I'm hoping to borrow a few minutes of your time. I'm here to ask for support for my friend Matt.

I met Matt over a decade ago when he and I were both local 48 apprentices on a job and we started carpooling to save some money. We got to know each other over the car rides and bonded because of us both being in the service. He was in the Airforce around the same time I was in the Army. One story that always stuck out in my mind from that time is when he was deployed to support the efforts in the middle east.

He worked on Fighter jets. And while I don't remember all the details of the story, I do remember that when he and his crew were working on one of the jets he was underneath. It was kinda one of those in the right place at the right time moments. Something happened that caused the part of the plane that holds ammunition to fall and if it would have hit the ground the drop would have caused the rounds to discharge, potentially wounding or killing himself and those around him. This piece weighed a few hundred pounds, and him being able to reach above his head extending his arm and holding it in place was an incredibly lucky incident that with all things considered didn't have a horrific outcome. But it did have some consequences.

This action caused him an injury that the doctors told him would one day catch up with him. He sustained an injury to his back that he was told he would one day have to have surgery on.

On our commute he told me that even though he was capable of doing a desk job, he loved manual labor and its part of why he chose to be an electrician. He got to use both his body and his mind and he was going to do that until it became unbearable.

That day has came.

11 years after I met Matt, he finally pushed his body to its limit and is in the process of lining up surgery. The doctors told him that its time to hang up his tool belt and find a new way to support his wife and two kids. Its going to be a major transition point in his life and I'd like him to have a little help to make it a little easier on his wife and kids.

I wish this is where the story ends but its not, how does the saying go? when it rains it pours? So here it is .

On the way home from church in early October, Matt and his family had another nearly tragic event happen. They were headed home from a family gathering after church when he had a seizure in the car. Luckily the car came to a stop without anyone else getting hurt. His wife stood by and as he started to turn blue she jumped into action. She ran to the other side of the car and pulled him to the ground and started chest compressions to get the oxygen flowing again. She told her daughter to get her phone and call 911.

Her quick thinking kept Matt from passing on and they were able to get an ambulance there in time to rush him to the hospital where once they had him stabilized they could run some tests.

What they found was a brain tumor. Thankfully it is on the outside of his brain. So as far as things go, it could have been a lot worse and they are grateful for how things turned out but the road ahead is uncertain. His surgery is coming up the first part of November and they are optimistic because of the location of the tumor and things like that but the recovery from surgery is going to be anywhere from 1 to 6 months. Then he gets to face the solution for his back problems so its going to be a long road to recovery for my friend.

Many of you might not know Matt like I do but as an example of the kind of guy he is, back a few years ago when I was moving he called to ask to see how the move was going and at the time I had tweaked my back so it was going slow. He told me ok, let me see what I can do and the next day showed up with his brother and a trailer and moved me so I could heal. I didn't ask for help, but he was there at the drop of a hat to help a friend who hadn't talked to him in a few months. He is also the kind of guy who when it comes to work, he is there to work and sets distractions to the side. Nose to the grindstone type, likes to get things done.

Please help me give my friend some help so that he can have a smooth transition at a critical point in his life for him and his family.

Thank you for taking the time to read and please donate and pass this along to show my friend the meaning of brotherhood, whether we were brother in arms, brothers in life, or brothers on the job.

Thank you for reading,

Craig Enneberg