Dear Friends of Sterling and Janie - for those who have been following their journey for the past 3 months (and past 3 years) you know what this time has looked like. For those who don’t know, here is a summary.
Our dear friend Sterling had a medical nightmare this summer after a biopsy gone terribly wrong, which landed him in Shock Trauma in Baltimore for 10 days, where he nearly bled out. He had 3 surgeries in 4 days and was on a ventilator for nearly a week and was unable to receive nutrition through a feeding tube, because that tube was being used to suction blood from all the bleeding. It was a horrific ordeal, and it was beyond devastating. It was absolutely gut-wrenching. Miraculously, he survived.
Shortly before discharge, he got the results of the biopsy, and was given a diagnosis of Cancer. He went from the frying pan into the fire. He began cancer treatments in a highly weakened state, from all that had just gone on with the previous medical trauma. He went through the toughest of treatments with chemo and radiation because the area they were targeting was his mouth, tongue, throat, and neck, which has caused eating to be excruciatingly painful. That, and all the other side effects were completely brutal. Because of that, weight has been a major concern all summer, and continues to be. They didn’t (and still don’t) want him to end up on a feeding tube.
He recently completed treatment and was able to "ring the bell.” Now, we are ringing a different kind of bell. Sending out an SOS. Sterling needs a financial miracle. The fact that he lived to see this day is nothing short of miraculous. He didn’t come this far to fail.
He is still in an extremely weakened state, and he may not be able to return to work, and he’s already 74. He is also already drowning in debt from not being able to work for 3 years during Covid because he had a heart attack in 2020, at age 71. Due to his age and underlying condition, he was extremely high risk, and it just wasn’t safe for him to work. (He couldn’t find a work from home job, as he has no transferable skills and is not a tech savvy guy. It was certainly not from lack of trying to find work ~ he tried valiantly.) Now, he is even higher risk after his recent medical nightmare that landed him in Shock Trauma — and then getting a diagnosis of cancer — and now being immunocompromised.
Please help Sterling to get back on his feet and be able to pay his bills going forward. This is a time of extreme uncertainty while he is still very sick from cancer treatments, and needs time to rest and heal. The financial stress is taking an enormous toll on his ability to heal. He desperately needs a lifeline. Your donation could make all the difference in the world in helping Sterling to get well.
They have said to be prepared for the side effects to take a couple of months to subside. For some, it may take longer. Some have said it could be up to a year. We are all unique and different. Age, underlying conditions, and how strong (or weak) one was, going into treatment, can make all the difference in how long it takes to heal. We still won’t know for another two to three months whether his cancer treatments were effective. Sterling is not in any condition to go back to work at this time. He needs time to rest and recuperate. His wife has been working non-stop, doing everything she possibly can for the past 3+ years during this time of uncertainty with Covid and now Cancer. She has escalated her working relentlessly, all throughout this time, when Sterling couldn’t work, and that still isn’t enough to cover all the expenses. She has also been taking care of Sterling all summer long, and doing everything humanly possible to help, while working all throughout.
Sterling has helped save countless, untold lives, in 12-Step Recovery. He has worked so hard and so long for so little. He worked at a rehab for the last 13 years before Covid. He wanted to give back where he had been given so much. Mission accomplished. He has sponsored over 100 guys in recovery. He got clean and sober in 1979 at age 30, and has 44 years of sobriety. He is one of the kindest and most helpful souls you will ever meet, who has given so much to so many over the years, both personally and professionally. He has given so much hope to the hopeless. He is such an incredible giver. Now is our time to give back to him.
These were unforeseen circumstances that no one could’ve predicted during unprecedented times of the pandemic. Why things turned out this way, no one knows. All we do know is these are supposed to be "the golden years” and they are anything but golden for “Sterling Silver” who has a heart of pure gold. He would give you the shirt off his back.
We need a major “George Bailey” moment, where the whole community comes together and rallies for George, in "It’s A Wonderful Life.” The closing line of the movie says, “No man is a failure who has friends.” If the measure of a man is his many friendships, then Sterling is one of the richest and most successful men I’ve ever known. Let’s all help Sterling to be able to rest and recover from all that’s gone on medically and financially. He really needs our support. This is a very humbling position for him to be in. Your generous contribution can make all the difference in the world.
Thank you so very much, everyone. Your generosity is so greatly appreciated, more than you will ever know. God bless you. After this Labor Day Weekend, and beyond, let’s help give Sterling a rest from his labors, so he can begin to heal. Blessings.