Hi Everyone,

My name is Anna Torrens Armstrong and I am starting this GoFundMe account to support my next-door neighbor, Kelvin Velez. On September 15, 2022, Kelvin was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and began treatment almost immediately, spending 21 days in-patient at Tampa General Hospital/Moffitt for his first round of chemotherapy. He has a 2nd round of chemo coming up soon, all in preparation to make him a candidate (cancer free) for a bone marrow transplant.

Kelvin has been married to Teresa Bean for 15 years. They have two daughters – Ann Bean-Velez (8th grade) and Katalina Velez (college). Teresa works part-time and has been holding things down at home while Kelvin was in-patient and going to the hospital to stay with him as much as possible. Kelvin has worked as a traffic control installer for over 12 years. Due to his diagnosis, frequent medical appointments, hospital stays and side effects of the treatments, he has been out of work for the past month and a half. The side effects of the chemo cause low blood counts that lead to extreme fatigue, weight loss and more, making it not only unsafe to do the work Kelvin does but impossible. He has been the primary earner for his home, his health care insurance is through work, and he has only a few weeks before he will have to switch to COBRA (which is very costly) to maintain coverage for himself and his family.

Kelvin has a long road ahead of him to kick this cancer. He has a strong, supportive family that loves him dearly. When I asked his daughter, Ann, what her favorite thing about her dad is, she replied, “It’s hard to say because I love everything about him.”

Why is this important to me? Kelvin and Teresa are long-time, hardworking residents of Henry and Ola park community of Old Seminole Heights. They quietly raise their family in a small home and do what we all do – hustle to keep things going and try to live a happy life. I have had the privilege of knowing them and being their next-door neighbor for almost 8 years. We have watched our little five-year-olds turn into teenagers. When I learned about Kelvin’s diagnosis, I asked if I could help set up something to support them through this challenging time. I know it well. My sister is a Stage IV cancer survivor. The stressors, anxiety, uncertainty and chaos that come with a diagnosis like this, let alone the added stress and uncertainty related to work, finances and managing life, overwhelms you. Unless you have experienced this, it is hard to know the reality of how difficult life becomes at a time like this: The world seems to stand still and spin out of control simultaneously.

Kelvin and his family have never once asked for anything. They have been the best kind of neighbors someone could ask for. He is kind and always has a wave and smile. He does all the fun things as a dad. When Hurricane Irma strolled through Tampa, we lost power (and I was very pregnant). Kelvin didn’t miss a beat, coming over to see if we had power (they still had it), and immediately said, “Let’s run some extension cords to keep your refrigerator going.” That is the kind of person he is….he is always willing to help others. Now it is our time to help Kelvin and his family, more than ever, to keep their refrigerator running and everything else so they can stay on their feet.

Kelvin’s goal is to be cancer-free, to get back to feeling good physically and work again. If there is one thing I believe, we all need to support each other, especially in tough times.

On behalf of Kelvin and his family, I ask you to please consider a donation to support their family: Deductibles, COBRA insurance, meals on the table, and all the other financial things already piling up, so there is one less thing to worry about as he works on getting better.

Note: I have permission from Kelvin Velez to set up this account. The proceeds will be direct to Kelvin and his family’s account.