Hello everyone, I’m Analise Garcia and I’ve set up this fundraiser in honor of my dear father Joe Garcia. Originally, I started this GoFundMe to cover expenses while my dad was in the hospital fighting to heal. On Sunday, July 3rd, our family was given the news that he had 24 hours to live. My father passed away, peacefully and without pain, 72 hours later on Wednesday, July 6th.

This has come as not only an enormous loss, but also as a shock to our family. All of us expected to have years left with him. There are no words to describe this heartbreak. If you've ever met my dad, you know he was one of the most loving, most loved people, and that was evidenced by the amount of love around him in his final moments. Even the doctors were in awe of how loved he was.

My father was hospitalized in Los Angeles trying to recover from the cancer treatment he was on that has affected his organs, specifically his liver. For the past 12 years, he has battled through a liver transplant, cancer, and then cancer again. In 2019, after a few years of remission, the cancer came back. Fast and hard. So we fought it at the same level right back.. But this time, it was just too much on his body.

Despite all of the above, my dad had never once stopped working. He worked tirelessly to provide for his family, even while going through chemo. He devoted his entire life to providing for us. 

My family has not only lost its center,  we've also lost an income my mother and brother depended on.

 

It’s because of this, we’re calling on our community for support.

 

The first time I ever realized the impact my dad had on our community in Bakersfield was when he was away for several months while he awaited his liver transplant in Louisiana, it seemed like every day a new person was stopping by to tell me they loved my dad and how much he meant to them. That’s the kind of person my dad was. He would say hello to everyone who walks by and strike up warm conversation. He was the neighborhood dad.

 

If you loved Joe, if your life has been touched by Joe, or even if you’re just out there reading this and feel this in someway yourself, your help means everything to us, whether you can contribute $5 or something more.

 

Everything that you put into this fundraiser helps my family cover the costs that come with losing someone, and will help my mom make the transition to being the sole provider for her and my brother.

 

Thank you for reading his story, my family’s story, and for giving in whatever way you can. Sharing this also helps greatly. My father was our whole world, and while nothing will ever fill the hole in our hearts and lives he has left behind, we appreciate every contribution and every prayer more than we can possibly say.

 

All our love, the Garcia’s.