Three weeks ago, Sam lost consciousness while driving. By the grace of God, no one — including Sam — was hurt. Emergency personnel transported him by ambulance to a local hospital, where a CT scan revealed a large mass on the left side of his brain. He was then transferred to the Twin Cities for additional testing.

An MRI confirmed the mass was a tumor occupying nearly one-third of the left side of his brain. Just two days later, Sam underwent brain surgery. Doctors were able to remove the majority of the tumor and send samples to pathology for testing.

After surgery, Sam spent about a week in the hospital recovering before being transferred to an inpatient rehabilitation facility. There, he worked daily with physical, occupational, and speech therapists to regain some of the abilities affected by the tumor. After another week, he was released home and continues outpatient therapy as he fights to recover.

We recently received the final pathology results: Sam has been diagnosed with glioblastoma — an aggressive and terminal form of brain cancer. Doctors have given him an estimated prognosis of 1 to 2 years.

Sam is a devoted single father to four children, ages 11 to 15. He already endured the heartbreaking loss of his wife, Kristina, 4½ years ago. Recently, he had the incredibly difficult task of sharing this diagnosis with his children, and it has deeply impacted our entire family.

While we are holding tightly to hope, prayer, and faith for a miracle, we are also facing the reality of the difficult road ahead. Sam is currently unable to drive and will require ongoing therapy appointments, chemotherapy, radiation treatments, and possibly clinical trials. The financial burden of medical care, transportation, lost work, and daily living expenses is significant — not only for Sam and his children, but also for the family members taking time away from work to care for and support him.

We are incredibly grateful for every prayer, donation, meal, message, and act of support during this time. If you feel led to give financially, any amount will help ease the burden on Sam and his family as they focus on spending precious time together and fighting this battle.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your love, prayers, and support.