Help Steve with Medical Costs & Time with Family

Hello, my name is Kayla, and I’m Steve’s oldest daughter of three. I currently reside in North Carolina, and while I am unable to be physically present with my dad every day, my heart is always with him. This GoFundMe is my way of trying to support him from afar, as he navigates the significant and unexpected financial challenges that have come with his recent diagnosis. This sudden and drastic change has impacted all of our lives, and I’m hoping that with your help, we can ease some of the burden he faces. Every donation, share, and kind thought is deeply appreciated as we come together to support my dad during this difficult time.

This past month has been the most mentally and emotionally challenging time of my life. About a month ago, at 4 a.m., my sister found our dad curled up in pain in his room, completely out of it. She rushed him to Upstate Hospital, where he showed clear signs of a stroke. As the nurse assessed him, she confirmed our fears and told us we were racing against time. In that moment, it felt like the world slowed down around us.

After a CT scan and chest X-ray, the doctors confirmed he’d had a stroke and found multiple blood clots in his lungs. They began explaining the next steps when one doctor completely knocked the wind out of me, saying, “We found a mass in his pancreas, and we can also see it in his liver.” I thought I must have misheard and asked them to repeat it, hoping somehow I’d misunderstood.

Days in the hospital became a blur of tests and consultations with specialists. They eventually scheduled a biopsy, but during the procedure, he suffered two more strokes because they had to pause his Heparin drip temporarily. Each night, leaving the hospital felt nearly impossible. Seeing my dad in such a fragile state, and then having to leave him alone in his hospital room each night, was heartbreaking.

Four days later, we received the diagnosis we’d feared: Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, which had already spread to his liver and spine. On October 4th, my dad was released into Stevie’s care. After consulting with multiple doctors, he has decided to try chemotherapy, with his first infusion scheduled for November 7th. Watching his health decline so quickly has been devastating, but my dad is the strongest person I know, and he’s ready to fight with all he’s got.

For those who have reached out but haven’t heard back, please understand that my dad is now almost completely blind due to the strokes. Texting is difficult for him, so if you’d like to reach him, voice or video messages are the best way to connect. The situation has been incredibly taxing on all of us, but especially on my sister, Stevie, who has shouldered so much of this alone. When we got the news, her husband, Walker, was on storm leave helping out in North Carolina, specifically in Western North Carolina. Stevie had to manage most of this by herself, balancing her own family and adjusting her children’s lives and routines to care for our dad full-time. Her strength through this has been remarkable, as has my dad’s, but I believe now is a time when we could all use a little extra help and support.

Our family is also facing significant financial challenges on top of everything else. Dad’s insurance doesn’t cover many of his treatments, and we’re struggling to keep up with both medical and non-medical bills. Just today, we learned that his blood-thinning injections, which are critical to prevent further strokes, would cost $500 out of pocket without insurance. We don’t yet know what the ongoing expenses will look like, but any contributions would help meet our immediate needs.

Any support would go directly to helping my father with his medical bills, necessary treatments, and travel expenses. Joelle, my sister, recently had a baby and is out of work; I’m a solo parent to three kids; and Stevie has had to take time away from her job to care for our dad full-time, even moving him into her home. We’re all doing our best to support him, and what we really want is to make his life a little less stressful in these difficult days.

Thank you to everyone who has been there for us already—you know who you are, and we are so grateful. We will continue to give updates on Dad, and we’re hopeful that we’ll get a little more time with him. If you’re able to help, in any way or through prayer, it would mean everything to us and, most importantly, to my father.