Our cherished friend and sister by choice Shelby is the best, most loving, and caring person you could ever be privileged enough to meet. Shelby has dedicated herself to helping kids through their high school years as a school counselor. Shelby has a giving heart and many times dedicates her weekends to work to ensure her kids have the best educational support possible. Shelby is an avid reader who recently started a monthly book club with us and has goals of attending several book events and festivals. Shelby found love with her husband Gerrit and they were wed in 2017. Shelby is the proud dog mom of a feisty Shiba Inu named Kohana AKA Nana.

At the beginning of the year, Shelby started noticing swollen nymph nodes and fatigue. Shelby had to undergo several tests to include blood work, biopsy, lymph node removal surgery, and a PET scan to find out the cause of her symptoms. In February, Shelby was diagnosed with Hodkins Lymphoma Stage 2. After her diagnosis, a plan was put into place to begin chemotherapy. Before chemotherapy could begin, Shelby received an EKG and had a port inserted. Shelby has to receive two rounds of four sessions of chemotherapy before retesting to determine the status of the leukemia before a decision is made to continue with more rounds of chemotherapy. So far, Shelby has undergone two sessions of chemotherapy and is scheduled to continue her sessions every other Wednesday.

Every appointment has taken a hard emotional and financial toll on both Shelby and Gerrit. Shelby’s insurance unfortunately does not fully cover the treatment she needs and she and Gerrit must pay hundreds of dollars for each appointment before any services can be rendered. Unfortunately, the chemotherapy sessions and many appointments are causing Shelby to miss a lot of work and finances are starting to get tight.

Shelby’s giving nature stops her from asking for help, but as her friends we are asking for any assistance with helping to take some of the financial burden off of her and Gerrit. Money should not be a stressor while they focus on Shelby’s health and road to recovery. If you are unable to give a monetary donation, we would ask for you to please spread the word and share this page as well as lift Shelby and Gerrit up in prayers.

On behalf of Shelby, we thank you all for your generosity, love, and prayers. God is with us.

With love,

Demian and Nikiea