Please help the Finch family!!

Ryan, Angie, and Ivan Finch need our help. We want to tell their story- and ask for any, who are able, to help with the huge financial strain that Ryan's long term illness has caused.

Ten years ago Ryan was diagnosed with liver disease. Soon after, an unexpected and potentially life-ending complication occurred. Ryan made it clear to all of us and most importantly to his God, that he would keep his integrity under the the most difficult circumstances. From that time on, Ryan has been unable to work secularly due to intermittent bouts of serious illness. To put it in perspective, since young Ivan was 6 months old his father has been in and out of the hospital. If you spend any time with Ivan, you learn right away that his father’s condition looms over him and he lives daily with the fear of losing his dad. It is heartbreaking.

But as most of us know, Ryan has made the best possible use of his time and ability by vigorously working on projects for the friends and putting his skills as a carpenter to good use. Even more than that, he has proven to be a reliable source of support to his local congregations and is widely known for smiling and helping his brothers and sisters.

Most recently, his health took a more acute turn for the worst when he suffered a cardiac issue that again nearly took his life. He remained hospitalized for 4 long weeks, with subsequent weeks of rehab for the brain injury. The device that the surgeons implanted to keep his heart beating has now become the very reason that local bloodless surgery teams have rejected his case for liver transplantation- which he will need in the near future. One team in Southern California has agreed to evaluate his charts and do preliminary testing to determine his eligibility. It is expected that several flights to California will be required, as well as accompanying family members for support and logistics. The cost will be substantial, especially when coupled with the monthly costs of his current medications.

While there are many aspects of Ryan's situation we cannot control, it is important to us that we try to alleviate the stress of these expenses, and let Ryan focus and getting healthy and having the treatments he needs. We are blessed to have a worldwide brotherhood for support- we thank all of you for hearing our story and for the generosity that is being shone.