Hello friends! This is Kim McKonly. Our wonderful friend, John Straw, the man who is always giving his time, energy, and love to everyone else, is truly in desperate need. Things went down the very slippery hill when Punkin Ridge's beloved, John's Gram, needed ongoing care prior to her passing. Of course, he dropped all that could be dropped and provided in home care with no financial assistance to do so. His business suffered to the point of near loss, it became necessary to sell his home (and he's taking a loss), and all of his personal expenses went unpaid while he donated his time to Gram and the family. There were many weeks where he went without working as his business requires him to shop at salvage yards for parts, store them in his storage units, and ship them to buyers. When you are caring for someone who is hours from your home, you can't manage those details; his income suffered tremendously.

 

As often happens, while John is caring for others, his personal affairs go ignored. He juggles. Juggling is no longer an option.

 

Those of us who love John noticed that his hearing was beginning to wane terribly. He was exhausted, unable to enjoy eating, and unable to find physical comfort. He thought it was due to stress from losing Gram and all the financial strain. It was not... John found himself in the ER a few weeks ago and learned that there is a tumor mass that has closed off 75% of his throat including part of his airway and esophagus. It is also affecting his eustachian tube which is why he cannot hear. The team that discovered the mass feel that it is likely malignant due to the shape and color, but there cannot be a surgical plan until more is known about the tumor. That can't occur until December 10 and surgery and potential treatments will be scheduled after that visit.

 

John cannot work. He is having trouble breathing, speaking, swallowing (thus eating), and hearing. He is months behind on all of his bills and at this moment, there is no idea when things will improve. We know it won't be until after December 20th for sure. In the meantime, there are things that must happen or he will not only lose his home due to the sale of the estate, but he is days away from losing the storage units and all of their contents which house his entire business. He needs $1000 in just a few days to ensure that the unit's contents aren't claimed and sold by the facility. All of the monthly costs of living are behind and need covered. Essentials, like power, heat, water, etc, are nearing the shut-off dates, not a single vehicle is drivable as they are all in disrepair (those who stated they would be repairing them have, sadly and suddenly, disappeared without doing so AND left him with vehicle parts scattered about his property), and there are now going to be medical bills that are completely unknown.

 

I've watched John drop everything and help others. He has helped ME and Trauma survivors through Beauty After Bruises countless times, and I'm sure many of you reading this have also been recipients of his undying love. He needs US! He has worked very hard to create and maintain a business that is he loves. It brings him great joy. Losing Gram was unthinkable; losing his beloved business while others profit from the sale of all he's worked to obtain is equally unthinkable. Knowing that he is facing a battle that brings the strongest of us to our knees on top of all he has endured recently.. no words.

 

Help John save his business, keep the essentials functioning, keep the groceries coming, and cover his medical needs so he can focus on getting himself well. You know he would do this for each of us, and it's time we do so for him. We each can help in one way or another. Small contributions add up to large amounts. Even sharing this so that others can see it also makes a big difference. Let's rally for our friend in his greatest time of need.

 

THANK YOU to all.