Jesselyn's Journey - Searching for a Diagnosis
Donation protected
My husband, Mark, and I are asking for monetary donations for someone we consider family - Jesselyn Sinkhorn. We are trying to cover immediate medical expenses in search for a diagnosis that exceeds her ability to pay. She is critically ill and we need to act fast. Please pause to read a little further and let me introduce you and tell you her story…
Jesselyn is a 29 year old graduate from the University of Central Arkansas who has been teaching the past few years in Taipei, Taiwan. Upon returning home to Fayetteville, Arkansas, she sought out at job at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Because of her major in history and her affinity for language, she saw her future as a museum curator. Ultimately she took a job at the 21c Museum Hotel and was hoping to move up to a job at Crystal Bridges Museum or The Momentary when the Covid virus hit and she was furloughed from her job.
Soon after her furlough, Jesselyn was admitted to CHI Hot Springs with extreme abdominal pain and episodes of dizziness, nausea and headaches. She underwent a CT which revealed a mass in her portal vein (the vein that feeds the liver). She also has splenomegaly, varices, ascites, and portal vein thrombosis. Presumptive diagnosis was some type of malignancy. After a biopsy and a week of blood transfusions and tests, her pathology was inconclusive and she was discharged to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences because her condition warranted expert care if she was to receive a more invasive intervention.
While at UAMS, Jesselyn had a repeat MRI scan, EGD and endoscopic biopsy of the mass. The results again showed some type of mass that was felt to be inconclusive. She was discharged and followed up in the surgical oncology clinic where she was told that nothing further could be done for her there. Her doctor has initiated a referral to the Sarcoma Center at M.D. Anderson. After talking with admissions at MDA and getting a $58,250 cost estimate of charges for another biopsy, we felt defeated... in fact, that information was what prompted us to consider doing a gofundme.
As of today, we are searching for not only an expedited pathway to gain treatment but help with treatment once she gets there. Time is of the essence because of the mass. It is causing compression on vital structures, putting her life at risk. We need to get her to a hospital where they can diagnosis her illness and get her treatment as soon as possible! The same doctor that initiated the referral to MDA has agreed that the out of pocket costs are just too much and he is willing to bring her back to UAMS. She will have retroactive Medicaid coverage once the paperwork goes through but will still face costs beyond what she can ever afford.
It has been astounding to us that because of her inability to pay and her lack of firm diagnosis, the chances of her getting treatment are diminished. The system of our health care is mind boggling and the paper trail to apply for help is long, with many stop gaps along the way. We feel like we have been running in a squirrel cage with endless calls, letters and brainstorming session to find help IN TIME TO SAVE HER LIFE!
Jesselyn is a quiet, knowledgeable and kind 29 year old with passion for learning. She came into our lives as a young teen and has always impressed us with her fierce work ethic and gift of making the most out of what she has to work with! She paid her way through college working double shifts at restaurants and continued to earn money after graduation the same way in order to fulfill her dream of getting overseas. Until now, she has kept her illness very private and was only persuaded to let us start this page in the last 24 hours. She will hate the name of this GoFundMe page and she will not want to read any of what I have written about her… but SHE NEEDS HELP AND NEEDS IT QUICKLY! That is why I decided to go for it and ask for you to PLEASE CONSIDER MAKING A DONATION FOR THIS NEXT CRITICAL STEP IN DIAGNOSIS.
If you have any specific questions or advice for our family, you can contact me through a Go Fund Me message, or by emailing me at [email redacted].
If you would prefer to donate outside of Go Fund Me - “Old School Style”, you can make checks out to “Jesselyn Sinkhorn” and send them to this address:
Sarah Robbins
151 Woodland Heights Place
Hot Springs, AR 71901
When you donate using Go Fund Me, the site asks for a “tip”. If you do not wish to leave a tip, simply select Other in the drop down and enter 0 as a dollar amount.
Jesselyn’s time in Taiwan (in her own words)
I lived in the Banqiao district in New Taipei in Taiwan - a newly invorigated section of the city that felt like a comfortable family enclave in some areas and like Blade Runner in others! I loved it there. I was a surprisingly active tutor in the community.
Being one of few foreigners who was willing to live more than five subway stops away from the city center gave me the opportunity to connect with Taiwanese families in a way that I could have never foreseen. They invited me into their homes, allowed me the freedom to build a creative learning environment with their children, and snacks!- - they were always feeding me really cool snacks like Boba tea, matcha, mochi, and red bean buns!
Since I was in the neighborhood, I took my chances and visited lots of places I’d always wanted to see… Osaka, Kyoto, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City. Traveling and seeing so much tradition and antiquity, butted right up against incredible displays of modernity, reminded me of Northwest Arkansas. Where I live, Fayetteville, is a close community. Springdale is diverse, and Bentonville is… well, I don’t know what it is yet because the culture that is being cultivated there is unprecedented.
I was so excited to come home. I flew back in the middle of December to visit for Christmas. I had not been back in so long and I was excited to see my family and friends. As the new year came around and news of a virus was surfacing, I was concerned about returning to Taiwan. By the middle of January, I had decided it would be best to stay for good.
I had a plan. I moved to Fayetteville for the beginning of the new year and started looking for jobs. I thought with my history degree, I could be a valuable asset to the museums in the area. I tried to get on at Crystal Bridges and I really pursued being on the ground floor of the not yet opened Momentary. Eventually, I settled for a job as a PM server in The Hive restaurant. It’s in the 21c Hotel and Modern Art Museum so, even though I was back to my younger roots as a server, at least I had my foot in the door! I planned to move up from there. My boss, the food and beverage director for the restaurant, actually approached me about my work ethic, capability and plans for my future the week before I was hospitalized.
When I think of my future, I see myself being a part of one of the cultural institutions of Arkansas. I want to work with the community to curate special events and make art and antiquity accessible to locals. I'd like to contribute to the modern atmosphere that's drawing people from all over to our state. People initially come to Arkansas because it's the Natural State, but I see how impressed they are by our contributions to the arts and humanities. 21c is a great company with real passion for the community, and I'm grateful for their support through all of this.
I have learned that traveling is a wonderful thing. I did it solo most of the time so I got to do it my way, and I met real people, locals, and fellow international travelers who I cherish and communicate with on a regular basis. Hostels, sleeper trains, airplanes, and tables for one do make for their own special type of loneliness. For me, it could only be remedied by coming back home, being filled with the love of friends and family, and hopefully having the opportunity to enrich them in turn with my experiences.
Jesselyn is a 29 year old graduate from the University of Central Arkansas who has been teaching the past few years in Taipei, Taiwan. Upon returning home to Fayetteville, Arkansas, she sought out at job at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. Because of her major in history and her affinity for language, she saw her future as a museum curator. Ultimately she took a job at the 21c Museum Hotel and was hoping to move up to a job at Crystal Bridges Museum or The Momentary when the Covid virus hit and she was furloughed from her job.
Soon after her furlough, Jesselyn was admitted to CHI Hot Springs with extreme abdominal pain and episodes of dizziness, nausea and headaches. She underwent a CT which revealed a mass in her portal vein (the vein that feeds the liver). She also has splenomegaly, varices, ascites, and portal vein thrombosis. Presumptive diagnosis was some type of malignancy. After a biopsy and a week of blood transfusions and tests, her pathology was inconclusive and she was discharged to the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences because her condition warranted expert care if she was to receive a more invasive intervention.
While at UAMS, Jesselyn had a repeat MRI scan, EGD and endoscopic biopsy of the mass. The results again showed some type of mass that was felt to be inconclusive. She was discharged and followed up in the surgical oncology clinic where she was told that nothing further could be done for her there. Her doctor has initiated a referral to the Sarcoma Center at M.D. Anderson. After talking with admissions at MDA and getting a $58,250 cost estimate of charges for another biopsy, we felt defeated... in fact, that information was what prompted us to consider doing a gofundme.
As of today, we are searching for not only an expedited pathway to gain treatment but help with treatment once she gets there. Time is of the essence because of the mass. It is causing compression on vital structures, putting her life at risk. We need to get her to a hospital where they can diagnosis her illness and get her treatment as soon as possible! The same doctor that initiated the referral to MDA has agreed that the out of pocket costs are just too much and he is willing to bring her back to UAMS. She will have retroactive Medicaid coverage once the paperwork goes through but will still face costs beyond what she can ever afford.
It has been astounding to us that because of her inability to pay and her lack of firm diagnosis, the chances of her getting treatment are diminished. The system of our health care is mind boggling and the paper trail to apply for help is long, with many stop gaps along the way. We feel like we have been running in a squirrel cage with endless calls, letters and brainstorming session to find help IN TIME TO SAVE HER LIFE!
Jesselyn is a quiet, knowledgeable and kind 29 year old with passion for learning. She came into our lives as a young teen and has always impressed us with her fierce work ethic and gift of making the most out of what she has to work with! She paid her way through college working double shifts at restaurants and continued to earn money after graduation the same way in order to fulfill her dream of getting overseas. Until now, she has kept her illness very private and was only persuaded to let us start this page in the last 24 hours. She will hate the name of this GoFundMe page and she will not want to read any of what I have written about her… but SHE NEEDS HELP AND NEEDS IT QUICKLY! That is why I decided to go for it and ask for you to PLEASE CONSIDER MAKING A DONATION FOR THIS NEXT CRITICAL STEP IN DIAGNOSIS.
If you have any specific questions or advice for our family, you can contact me through a Go Fund Me message, or by emailing me at [email redacted].
If you would prefer to donate outside of Go Fund Me - “Old School Style”, you can make checks out to “Jesselyn Sinkhorn” and send them to this address:
Sarah Robbins
151 Woodland Heights Place
Hot Springs, AR 71901
When you donate using Go Fund Me, the site asks for a “tip”. If you do not wish to leave a tip, simply select Other in the drop down and enter 0 as a dollar amount.
Jesselyn’s time in Taiwan (in her own words)
I lived in the Banqiao district in New Taipei in Taiwan - a newly invorigated section of the city that felt like a comfortable family enclave in some areas and like Blade Runner in others! I loved it there. I was a surprisingly active tutor in the community.
Being one of few foreigners who was willing to live more than five subway stops away from the city center gave me the opportunity to connect with Taiwanese families in a way that I could have never foreseen. They invited me into their homes, allowed me the freedom to build a creative learning environment with their children, and snacks!- - they were always feeding me really cool snacks like Boba tea, matcha, mochi, and red bean buns!
Since I was in the neighborhood, I took my chances and visited lots of places I’d always wanted to see… Osaka, Kyoto, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City. Traveling and seeing so much tradition and antiquity, butted right up against incredible displays of modernity, reminded me of Northwest Arkansas. Where I live, Fayetteville, is a close community. Springdale is diverse, and Bentonville is… well, I don’t know what it is yet because the culture that is being cultivated there is unprecedented.
I was so excited to come home. I flew back in the middle of December to visit for Christmas. I had not been back in so long and I was excited to see my family and friends. As the new year came around and news of a virus was surfacing, I was concerned about returning to Taiwan. By the middle of January, I had decided it would be best to stay for good.
I had a plan. I moved to Fayetteville for the beginning of the new year and started looking for jobs. I thought with my history degree, I could be a valuable asset to the museums in the area. I tried to get on at Crystal Bridges and I really pursued being on the ground floor of the not yet opened Momentary. Eventually, I settled for a job as a PM server in The Hive restaurant. It’s in the 21c Hotel and Modern Art Museum so, even though I was back to my younger roots as a server, at least I had my foot in the door! I planned to move up from there. My boss, the food and beverage director for the restaurant, actually approached me about my work ethic, capability and plans for my future the week before I was hospitalized.
When I think of my future, I see myself being a part of one of the cultural institutions of Arkansas. I want to work with the community to curate special events and make art and antiquity accessible to locals. I'd like to contribute to the modern atmosphere that's drawing people from all over to our state. People initially come to Arkansas because it's the Natural State, but I see how impressed they are by our contributions to the arts and humanities. 21c is a great company with real passion for the community, and I'm grateful for their support through all of this.
I have learned that traveling is a wonderful thing. I did it solo most of the time so I got to do it my way, and I met real people, locals, and fellow international travelers who I cherish and communicate with on a regular basis. Hostels, sleeper trains, airplanes, and tables for one do make for their own special type of loneliness. For me, it could only be remedied by coming back home, being filled with the love of friends and family, and hopefully having the opportunity to enrich them in turn with my experiences.
Organizer and beneficiary
Sarah Fisher Robbins
Organizer
Hot Springs, AR
Jesselyn Sinkhorn
Beneficiary