William Pluff Tough

In late October our father, Bill Pluff, started to complain of severe pain in his head and chest. Everyone who knows Bill knows it takes a lot for him to complain about anything. On October 20th, after a few bad days, although he was reluctant, my brothers and I were able to get him to go to the ER.

The rollercoaster of events then began. It was there we learned the devastating news that he was diagnosed with a brain tumor and stage 4 lung cancer.

We were advised brain surgery would be needed as soon as possible. So, like the tough guy he is, our Dad underwent brain surgery and got through it with the help of his family by his side. Doctors were able to remove most of the tumor but not all.

Then the narrowing of his SVC vein to his heart meant immediately taking on radiation followed by chemotherapy. Although some days are better than others, Bill is determined to beat this with his children, grandchildren and close friends there every step of the way.

The strength he has shown during this uneasy time is unlike any I have seen before. Bill continues to stay strong for his children and grandchildren (age 4, age 2 and one on the way) but we all know sometimes it’s the people who are the strongest that are the least likely to ask for help.

Our Dad has always been the type of person to help those in need but now he is on the other side. He has always been the first to offer a helping hand and would give the shirt off his back if it was the last one he had. It brings me to tears when I hear the stories of all of the ways he has helped people in their times of need but he doesn’t like to make that kind of stuff public or take credit because it wasn’t about the credit, it was about the person he was helping.

He has an enormous about of pride and knowing him, I’m sure I’ll be in big trouble for doing this but I know there are so many people who know and love our dad that would be willing to help during our time of need. Currently our father needs full time care in order to survive and that is becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with financially. With that said, the kind donations to this fund will go towards medical expenses, medical transportation and around-the-clock home care.

Our Dad is the rock of our family and you will truly never know how much this means to us all. From the bottom of our hearts, we are forever grateful for the love and support during this time.