Helping a father with cancer

Last month our family received the most devastating news that my husband, Bill Messerschmidt, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of terminal, stage 4 pancreatic cancer.  At the time of discovery, it had already metastasized to his liver and lungs. Unfortunately he was given 6 months worst case scenario, and up to a year best case scenario. Hearing that news was the most devastating things that could have happened to our family. He has since been hospitalized three times this past month with complications from the aggressive nature of his cancer which had to halt his chemotherapy.  At this point, we're desperately praying that he can resume his treatment to prolong his life even a couple months more. We're also trying to enroll him in a medical trial for a genetic marker that may forestall the disease.

Bill only recently just turned 53 and is a loving and devoted husband and father of four children, our youngest being only 6 and 8 years old. His other two are his step-children that he's helped raise for the past 10+ years as his own. Our children and I have had to lean on one another for support as we watch him deal with debilitating pain, sickness, and the emotional turmoild that comes from being given a death sentence. The upcoming Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are bittersweet as these may be the last holidays he has to spend with his children. 

Bill is known to all as honest, responsible, dependable, hardworking, abundantly selfless, and an amazing provider.  He's done his best to make sure that his family is never without, and would always given to his childrens' needs before his own. Unfortunately, Bill is the sole provider for our family and due to his painful disease, he has been unable to work for weeks now as he has been consumed by a barrage of treatments, hospitalizations, doctor's appointments, and surgeries. Along with his inability to work, Bill and I have no savings, no assets, and no life insurance to secure a financial future for our children. We have no extended family to rely on for help in any way.

Bill is a man who would do anything for anyone. He is a proud man of dignity and would help his friends, neighbors, or colleagues in any way he could and would never expect a return favor or payment of any sort. He is a great friend and an even better father.  All of us who know Bill are grateful he's in our lives. We are all humbled by his disease and having to ask for help in any way.  All donations will go to helping him with his treatments, taking care of our household expenses while he is ill, making our last holidays special, and hopefully securing some sort of financial future for his children.

All we can ask at this time is that you pass this on to your friends, give if you can, and if you can't...just say a prayer. 

God Bless!
The Messerschmidt family