My name is Ebony Draper and I am requesting your help. We, as people, are typically the givers and not the recipients. I am in many organizations that give to others. I am also a pastor, and I give without question. My brother, Sidney Smith, and I are requesting your help because we have exhausted all savings.

Please Help Us Care for the Man Who Spent His Life Caring for Others

Our father, Craig Smith, has always been the kind of man who shows up—no matter the cost to himself.

For nearly 30 years, our father worked faithfully, building a life rooted in responsibility, integrity, and service. He was never the loudest voice in the room, but he was always the strongest presence. The one who helped neighbors without being asked. The one who gave his time, wisdom, and resources freely. The one who became a father figure to many, even when life had already handed him more pain than most people could carry.

Dad has experienced deep hurt throughout his life, yet he never allowed it to harden his heart. Instead, it shaped him into a man of compassion—someone who believed in lifting others even when he himself was weary.

In 2024-2025, our lives changed forever.

After being laid off from the job he dedicated nearly three decades to, my father suddenly found himself without insurance—something no one expects after a lifetime of responsible living. Around the same time, doctors discovered a hematoma the size of a cantaloupe in his thigh, which required surgical removal. What we hoped would be the beginning of healing quickly turned into devastating news.

Dad was diagnosed with Stage 4 terminal cancer.

The cancer has now spread to his lungs, and his physician has given a heartbreaking prognosis of six months to one year. Treatments, tests, and mounting medical bills have followed—each one taking a toll not only on his body, but on the stability he worked his entire life to maintain.

My father is not a man who asks for help.

He is financially responsible.

He planned.

He saved.

And yet, cancer does not respect preparation.

Every resource he had has now been depleted—not because of mismanagement, but because survival is expensive. Despite everything, Dad's greatest concern is not himself. It is maintaining his home, preserving his dignity, and having the ability to experience quality of life during the time he has left.

This man—our hero—deserves peace, comfort, and the ability to focus on living rather than worrying about bills.

I am asking for help on his behalf, because he would never ask himself.

Your support will help:

Cover medical bills and treatments

Maintain his home and basic living expenses

Provide comfort, stability, and dignity

Allow Craig (Dad) to focus on living fully, loving deeply, and spending meaningful time with those he has poured into for decades

If you know Craig, you already know the impact he has made.

If you don’t, please know this: your kindness will go directly to a man who has spent his entire life being kind to others.

Please help me help my father.

Please help us care for the man who cared for so many.

From the bottom of my heart—thank you.

P.S.: His wife of over 20 years died of cancer in 2016, and his wish is to take her ashes to Hawaii because he never had the opportunity to take her before she got sick due to always working.