Support Galen on his Continued Journey to Recovery

Hi friends and fam -

Many, if not most of you are familiar with my brother Galen's story. In 2016 he was diagnosed with ALL - a type of leukemia. His journey over the past 9 years has been full of triumphs and successes, with doctors often baffled by Galen's incredible ability to recover abnormally quickly, to get into remission on his own without any treatment (yes, he did this!) and to bounce back from radiation, chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant with the speed of a ninja and otherwordly strength and resiliency.

When things like this happen to you or your loved ones, it is often difficult to fathom and feels, much of the time, like an unbearable weight. What astonishes me about my brother is the grace and optimism with which he continues to flow through life. And what provides him (and us, his family) with an unwavering foundation is the love, support and generosity from you, our tribe. It is incredible and amazing and astonishing the response we get, time after time, and we simply could not do this without you.

Galen is facing another challenge - one that we will undoubtedly get through. It is also one that proves financially difficult and we need your help again.

After Galen's bone marrow transplant in November of 2023, he recovered beautifully and remained cancer-free for a year. Toward the end of 2024, he began experiencing strange symptoms in his face and recently we have learned that...well... it's back. Those are devastating words to type, much less to have to think about or, in Galen's case, to have to live with.

Galen will be going through a short series of chemotherapy, after which he will receive CAR-T cell therapy (a type of immunotherapy using Galen's own cells - science is amazing). After that, he will be receiving another bone marrow transplant. All this to say, Galen won't be able to work during this time, and, on top of it, he will not be able to get CAR-T cell therapy without getting secondary insurance (an additional and unexpected cost). He does get some support from the government, but it is not nearly enough.

It is an interesting world to be living in right now, but it is also a beautiful one when we can ask for help from our community - and from complete strangers in many cases - and receive that help, purely in love and compassion and kindness.

Thank you, friends and family, for together, we can prevail. Galen is a shining, bright flame who has positively impacted so many of our lives - we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your donations, kind messages, and the sharing of this campaign.

If you so choose, you can send donations directly to Galen via Venmo: @Galen-Gatzke

Platforms like these charge a fee, so direct donations are appreciated. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me with any thoughts or questions you may have.

In love and gratitude,

Big Sister, Gretchen