UPDATE 2/18/26

Yary is currently in surgery and we are awaiting any information but so far surgery is going well. Please be aware that the above goal is to help with expenses while she is not working. Two years ago, we raised over $20k for her recovery, so that is not part of the current amount. Again, every little bit helps. Send prayers and well wishes.

UPDATE:

My Gulliver family and friends,

We are heartbroken to share an update about Yary’s health.

After her recent procedures and scans, doctors discovered that the cancer is still present and she will need to undergo another surgery on February 18.

For someone who spends her days caring for our children…encouraging them, protecting them, loving them like her own…this has been devastating news.

Yary has always been the one showing up with patience, strength, and a smile for her students. Now she is facing a battle that requires all of her energy, courage, and faith. As she prepares for this next surgery and the recovery ahead, she will not be able to return to the classroom for the foreseeable future.

This has been incredibly hard news for Yary and all that are close to her. As she prepares for this next surgery and focuses on recovery, she will not be able to return to work until further notice.She has exhausted all of her sick days, and the emotional, physical, and financial strain has become overwhelming. The physical toll on her body is very real, and the financial burden continues to grow with each passing day.

This is our moment to show up for the teacher who has shown up for our children.

If you are able to help in any way — whether through a donation, sharing this page, or keeping Yary in your thoughts and prayers — it would mean more than we can express. Every bit of support helps ease the burden during this challenging time.

Every gesture of love helps carry her through this fight.

Let’s surround her the way she has surrounded our students with compassion, strength, and unwavering care.

Thank you for standing with Yary during this incredibly difficult time.

Coach Yary Roman has been a valued member of our community for 20 years as an Athletic Trainer, Physical Education teacher and Bowling and Weightlifting Coach as well as the sponsor of the GOALS club, which organizes quarterly athletic events for children with Neurodiversities, specifically autism and also sponsors the Fishing Club. Needless to say, she captures the spirit of unparalleled generosity. This being said, it is time to show our love, appreciation, and support for her.

This January, Coach Roman went in for her annual physical exam and her primary physician felt a mass in her neck. On January 16th, her birthday coincidentally, she received the diagnosis that the masses in her thyroid and lymph nodes were indeed cancerous. Surgeons expected the surgery to be a 7-8 hour procedure with a 1-2 day hospital stay, but instead, it turned into a highly intricate and invasive 10 hour surgery with a 4 day stay in the hospital, where 86 lymph nodes and her thyroid were removed and 2 drains placed in her neck. The cancer was found on the central neck and underneath the sternum, both sides of the neck and the nerves affecting the vocal cords as well as the thyroid.

Her recovery was initially expected to be within 4 weeks, but because of the depth of the surgery, it is taking much longer. She currently suffers from sleep deprivation, numbness in the lower lip, arm weakness and is still enduring a great deal of pain and swelling from the surgery. As part of her recovery, she also needs radioactive iodine therapy, voice recovery therapy, physical therapy to regain range of motion in her neck, and countless doctor’s appointments. As many of us may know, medical bills pile up quickly. She is currently on medical leave, which although it ensures she has a job to come back to, she currently does not have an income.

Although she has been fighting this battle quietly and discreetly, we feel that it is time for us to step in with an abundance of encouragement and financial support. The way she consistently shows up for others is a true testament to a generous spirit and selfless soul. We are hoping that our community can come together to help lift the burden of financial worry so she can focus on her recovery.