Help Cheryl & John Rebuild After a Decade of Medical Battles

Hi, I’m Lisa Becherer, and I’m starting this GoFundMe for my sister Cheryl and her husband John—two of the strongest people I know who have quietly endured more than most people realize. They’ve spent the past decade facing one medical crisis after another, and it’s left them physically, emotionally, and financially drained. They would never ask for help on their own, so I’m asking for them.

John and Cheryl were small business owners who ran a beautiful portrait studio together. In 2016, John suffered a stroke that paralyzed his right side, shutting down their business and cutting off their income. He worked hard in rehab and regained much of his strength, but it was a long road—and during that time, they burned through their savings just trying to survive.

Then in 2019, Cheryl was diagnosed with tongue cancer caused by a medication she took for Crohn’s disease. She had a major surgery followed by daily radiation treatments. Recovery was brutal, and soon after, COVID hit, making it even harder to find work or build income again.

Just when Cheryl tried to restart life with a real estate license, she learned that the radiation had destroyed her jawbone. She underwent an incredibly difficult surgery where they used the fibula bone from her leg to reconstruct her jaw. Around that same time, our brother was dying of cancer, and Cheryl did everything she could to help support our parents through it.

As if that weren’t enough, John was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2020, and because of COVID delays, the cancer had already begun to spread by the time it was removed. Since then, they’ve faced even more surgeries, more bills, and more heartbreak—including a new cancer diagnosis for John earlier this year and news that Cheryl will eventually need another jaw replacement.

They’ve used up all their savings, dipped into retirement funds, and are now burdened with thousands in back taxes due to insurance subsidy repayment. They’ve done everything they could to stay afloat—but now they truly need help.

I’m asking for your support to help Cheryl and John:

• Stay in their home

• Cover daily essentials and medical costs

• Get a little breathing room to rebuild their lives

Every dollar helps. Every share helps. If you know Cheryl, you know how hard this is for her to let me do—but I believe in them, and I know the impact that even a small act of kindness can make.

Thank you for reading, for caring, and for helping however you can.

With love,

Lisa Becherer