This is Liaina Liaina Jr, affectionately called Li by his friends. Li is an army combat veteran, a dedicated father of 4, and my best friend. What you do not see in this photo is that Li has been fighting for his life battling stage 4 bone cancer in the past year. It all started 3 years ago when Li was initially diagnosed with stomach cancer following a series of tests and biopsy. To say that it was devastating would be an understatement. The diagnosis took a huge toll on his blended family and marriage, which eventually led to a divorce. By God's grace, Li was able to beat the stomach cancer and went into remission, although brief.

Towards the end of last year, the cancer came back and aggressively spread throughout his bones. Recent scan shows it spreading to his organs as well. I have known Li for over 20 years. He is a fighter, someone who never gives in to adversity. Not only is he resilient, he is also the nicest and most caring person I have ever known. This sounds cliché but he would give the shirt off his back to a complete stranger, no questions asked. Li is very hopeful and is determined to fight this battle to the very end. He was being treated solely at Scott and White in Temple, Texas. After several months of trying, MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston finally decided to take him on after meeting certain milestones. But things aren't exactly what we expected or hoped for. Instead of taking sole responsibility for his treatment, they're partnering with his oncologist at Scott and White. We are still trying to educate ourselves on how this partnership with his oncologist works. Regardless, he is determined to make the best of this opportunity with MD Anderson. Unfortunately, this requires lots of traveling back and forth from Killeen to Houston, sometimes spending days in a hotel. As you can imagine, the expenses associated with this is enormous and a source of financial stress that is not conducive to his healing. We hope that sometime in the near future he will be fully admitted thereby eliminating this source of stress. Until then, this is his best option. So, with his permission, I'm starting this campaign to raise funds to cover his travel and lodging expenses. No amount is too small. Please donate what you can and share the link with your friends and family. Through his faith in God, support of loved ones, and the miracle of modern medicine, Li is determined to beat this. Together we can all make a difference in Li's life and stand alongside him as he continues this fight to beat this horrendous disease called cancer.