My mom, Linda and her husband Darryl, live in New Hampshire where temperatures regularly fall to single and negative digits in the winter. Unfortunately she has been battling metastatic breast cancer for the past 2 years, which has now reached stage 4. Her doctors told her that the cancer would not respond to chemo and radiation wasn't and option. Unwilling to accept this, she turned to a doctor willing to try some experimental treatments that had been used in parts of Europe with some success. Of course these treatments aren't completely covered by insurance and they are very expensive. She is over a year into these treatments and she has been kicking butt, but the cancer in her bones remains unchanged.

Somehow, my mom still works as a part-time in-home caretaker for elderly people three days a week to help pay her bills and medical treatments... My mom, sick with a cancerous death sentence, is still taking care of others when she should be the one being cared for.. It amazes me. Her husband, Darryl, works a full-time job during the day, then drives for Uber in the evenings to earn extra cash to help pay bills. To say they are doing their best to keep up is an understatement. And I want to help.

Here is what I need help with:

It is hard to stay warm during winter in New Hampshire and one of the main ways people heat their homes there is with oil furnaces. This is how my moms house is heated and, while its a very effective heating method, heating oil has become incredibly expensive. When me and my family visited her for Thanksgiving we were all freezing cold in the house. I noticed she was keeping her thermostat at just 62 degrees. She simply can’t afford the heating oil bill if she keeps it warmer.

This broke my heart. The woman that raised 5 children (including myself), stayed at home to take care of us, schooled us, brought us to music lessons, sports practices, cheered us on, cooked for us, took care of us when we were sick, and gave everything she had to ensure we had a good future, is now sitting in her home, bones riddled with cancer, and cant afford to keep her home at a comfortable temperature. I hated it. And wanted to do something about it.

I mentioned the idea of getting a pellet stove to help alleviate the heating bill, since pellets are much cheaper than oil. She loved the idea! Unfortunately, she doesn’t have the money to buy the stove and I’m not able to cover the cost myself due to my own financial situation.

That’s why I’m turning to crowd funding. While I cant afford to buy her the stove myself, I can at least contribute what I can financially and take action to raise the rest. I want to raise enough to cover the cost of the stove, professional installation, and enough pellets to get her started so she can stay warm and comfortable during her treatment. The more financial pressure we can take off of her the sooner can can stop working and focus on her health. A little warmth can go a long way in bringing her spirits up. Please help me bring some comfort to my sick mom while she continues to battle this cancer. Any amount helps.

I would love to buy her the stove by Christmas, lets see if we can make that happen! Thank you so much for your kindness and support!