In Memory of Andrea Edmonds Schneider
Dear Friends & Family,
It is with a heavy heart and great sadness that I share this GoFundMe page on behalf of my amazing wife, best friend, and mother of our son, Andrea Edmonds Schneider. On the morning of Sunday March 17, 2019, with her family by her side, Andrea earned her angel wings and accepted her ticket to heaven after a year-long battle with Stage 4 metastatic lung cancer. In March of 2018, just 1 year ago, was when our lives would change forever after Andrea was first diagnosed with lung cancer. The last year has not only been an emotional roller coaster ride of highs and lows, but also one that has undoubtedly put a strain on our family finances and I fear we still have a long road ahead as medical bills continue to accrue. Today we are humbly asking for your help and support during this difficult time to help with end-of-life costs, specifically funeral and memorial services and with the help of close friends and family some sort of locally placed memorial for our beloved Andrea (schedule of services and where to send donations can be found at the end of page). Thank you in advance for your gift...whether it be through donation...or by sincere words of love and comfort...or both. The outpouring of your love means the world to us and we are forever grateful.
By the time Andrea got her diagnosis of lung cancer, it had already metastasized to her brain causing her to have debilitating problems with her vision. How could this really be happening to her at only 44 years old was all we could think? While we were all terrified, Andrea suited up and put on her game face, without pause, as she prepared for the fight of her life not the end of life. She fought like a warrior for months and things started to look up as treatments were working and tumors were shrinking. Finally, there was a ray of sun breaking through the clouds and Andrea soaked up every minute of it by staying positive and choosing to focus on living every day rather than retreat to a dark place like most of us easily could or would. Andrea fought harder than I thought was even possible. Her strong will and stubborn tenacity paired with her passionate determination to succeed and set an example for Caden to never give up in the face of adversity, was the fuel that gave her strength to continue fighting head on even when she didn't feel well. Friends would call her their hero and her response would be, "I am no hero. I am just doing what any 45 year old mother would do...fight for her life with everything she's got."
Andrea continued to persevere even after the cancer had spread to her spine and continued to get worse due to a very rare complication that occurs in less than 5% of the entire population of people diagnosed with cancer. After an MRI scan she had done at the end of August 2018, Andrea was diagnosed with this horrible, rare and untreatable disease called Leptomeningeal Carcinoma, which can best be described as cancer that has spread to the central nervous system and into the spinal cord fluid where the cancer cells have room to flow freely making it impossible to target and treat. I remember the day well as I was celebrating my birthday with a good friend up in Aspen on the bike when I got the call and rushed home. It felt like the drive was longer than ever before as I prayed this wasn't happening with every mountain pass I went over to get home. I will never forget that day. It was the day we learned that her cancer had taken its largest and final turn and the rest of our lives would never be the same.
For those of you who knew her well, it will come as no surprise when I say that she never gave up and fought for every last minute she had left on this earth. Andrea was one-of-a-kind and she will be deeply missed by her family, friends, colleagues and anyone who was lucky enough to have met her. While she was taken from us far too soon, her time on this earth was more meaningful than most of us could imagine. Her passion for everything life had to offer, her unwavering commitment to her family & friends including myself and, more importantly, our amazing son, Caden, and her ability to bring out the best in everyone she came in contact with always amazed me...how could 1 person embody all of these qualities? She was the real life Super Woman that truly made this world a better place. Her laugh was contagious and her curiosity about all the places she had never been, but wanted to go, was inspiring. She had a natural ability to make anyone, close friend or distant acquaintance, feel loved unconditionally without judgement. She made others want to live greater, dream bigger, and love more. To know her was to love her.
While we are devastated by such a great loss, we also remind ourselves to be grateful as we are so fortunate to have had the opportunity to love and be loved by one incredibly brave and fierce woman.
In honor of Andrea, I share this poem...
"Not everything is supposed to become something beautiful and long-lasting. Sometimes people come into your life to show you what is right and wrong, to show you who you can be, to teach you to love yourself, to make you feel better for a little while, or to be just someone to walk with at night and spill your life to. Not everyone is going to stay forever, and we still have to keep on going and thank them for what they've given us." ~ Emery Allen
Yep, Andrea was that person for me and my response is, "Thank you for all you have given me, Andrea. I love you forever."
Services & a reception to follow will be held on Wednesday March 27, 2019
Services will begin at 2:30 pm at First Christian Church and presented by Lane Hardy with Valley Christian Church: 2000 N Lincoln Ave., Loveland, CO. 80538
Reception will begin at 4 pm at McGraff's American Grill: 1602 E Eisenhower Blvd., Loveland, CO. 80537
Donations can be made directly from this page or can be mailed to:
Valley Christian Church
c/o Pastor Lane Hardy
2328 S Douglas Ave.
Loveland, CO 80537
If you are not able to contribute financially, but would still like to help, we ask that you please share this page so we can reach as many people as possible. Our ultimate goal is to go above and beyond the set goal and push some of the proceeds to help bring awareness and expand information to the leptomeningeal carcinoma so that those who suffer from it along with their family can get a better understanding of what to expect from this disease and better help the patient and loved ones.
With Gratitude and Love,
Mike & Caden
It is with a heavy heart and great sadness that I share this GoFundMe page on behalf of my amazing wife, best friend, and mother of our son, Andrea Edmonds Schneider. On the morning of Sunday March 17, 2019, with her family by her side, Andrea earned her angel wings and accepted her ticket to heaven after a year-long battle with Stage 4 metastatic lung cancer. In March of 2018, just 1 year ago, was when our lives would change forever after Andrea was first diagnosed with lung cancer. The last year has not only been an emotional roller coaster ride of highs and lows, but also one that has undoubtedly put a strain on our family finances and I fear we still have a long road ahead as medical bills continue to accrue. Today we are humbly asking for your help and support during this difficult time to help with end-of-life costs, specifically funeral and memorial services and with the help of close friends and family some sort of locally placed memorial for our beloved Andrea (schedule of services and where to send donations can be found at the end of page). Thank you in advance for your gift...whether it be through donation...or by sincere words of love and comfort...or both. The outpouring of your love means the world to us and we are forever grateful.
By the time Andrea got her diagnosis of lung cancer, it had already metastasized to her brain causing her to have debilitating problems with her vision. How could this really be happening to her at only 44 years old was all we could think? While we were all terrified, Andrea suited up and put on her game face, without pause, as she prepared for the fight of her life not the end of life. She fought like a warrior for months and things started to look up as treatments were working and tumors were shrinking. Finally, there was a ray of sun breaking through the clouds and Andrea soaked up every minute of it by staying positive and choosing to focus on living every day rather than retreat to a dark place like most of us easily could or would. Andrea fought harder than I thought was even possible. Her strong will and stubborn tenacity paired with her passionate determination to succeed and set an example for Caden to never give up in the face of adversity, was the fuel that gave her strength to continue fighting head on even when she didn't feel well. Friends would call her their hero and her response would be, "I am no hero. I am just doing what any 45 year old mother would do...fight for her life with everything she's got."
Andrea continued to persevere even after the cancer had spread to her spine and continued to get worse due to a very rare complication that occurs in less than 5% of the entire population of people diagnosed with cancer. After an MRI scan she had done at the end of August 2018, Andrea was diagnosed with this horrible, rare and untreatable disease called Leptomeningeal Carcinoma, which can best be described as cancer that has spread to the central nervous system and into the spinal cord fluid where the cancer cells have room to flow freely making it impossible to target and treat. I remember the day well as I was celebrating my birthday with a good friend up in Aspen on the bike when I got the call and rushed home. It felt like the drive was longer than ever before as I prayed this wasn't happening with every mountain pass I went over to get home. I will never forget that day. It was the day we learned that her cancer had taken its largest and final turn and the rest of our lives would never be the same.
For those of you who knew her well, it will come as no surprise when I say that she never gave up and fought for every last minute she had left on this earth. Andrea was one-of-a-kind and she will be deeply missed by her family, friends, colleagues and anyone who was lucky enough to have met her. While she was taken from us far too soon, her time on this earth was more meaningful than most of us could imagine. Her passion for everything life had to offer, her unwavering commitment to her family & friends including myself and, more importantly, our amazing son, Caden, and her ability to bring out the best in everyone she came in contact with always amazed me...how could 1 person embody all of these qualities? She was the real life Super Woman that truly made this world a better place. Her laugh was contagious and her curiosity about all the places she had never been, but wanted to go, was inspiring. She had a natural ability to make anyone, close friend or distant acquaintance, feel loved unconditionally without judgement. She made others want to live greater, dream bigger, and love more. To know her was to love her.
While we are devastated by such a great loss, we also remind ourselves to be grateful as we are so fortunate to have had the opportunity to love and be loved by one incredibly brave and fierce woman.
In honor of Andrea, I share this poem...
"Not everything is supposed to become something beautiful and long-lasting. Sometimes people come into your life to show you what is right and wrong, to show you who you can be, to teach you to love yourself, to make you feel better for a little while, or to be just someone to walk with at night and spill your life to. Not everyone is going to stay forever, and we still have to keep on going and thank them for what they've given us." ~ Emery Allen
Yep, Andrea was that person for me and my response is, "Thank you for all you have given me, Andrea. I love you forever."
Services & a reception to follow will be held on Wednesday March 27, 2019
Services will begin at 2:30 pm at First Christian Church and presented by Lane Hardy with Valley Christian Church: 2000 N Lincoln Ave., Loveland, CO. 80538
Reception will begin at 4 pm at McGraff's American Grill: 1602 E Eisenhower Blvd., Loveland, CO. 80537
Donations can be made directly from this page or can be mailed to:
Valley Christian Church
c/o Pastor Lane Hardy
2328 S Douglas Ave.
Loveland, CO 80537
If you are not able to contribute financially, but would still like to help, we ask that you please share this page so we can reach as many people as possible. Our ultimate goal is to go above and beyond the set goal and push some of the proceeds to help bring awareness and expand information to the leptomeningeal carcinoma so that those who suffer from it along with their family can get a better understanding of what to expect from this disease and better help the patient and loved ones.
With Gratitude and Love,
Mike & Caden
