I am Jenny, Kelly's sister in law. I am trying to help raise funds to help with the cost of living for Howard, Kelly and the boys while Howard is in recovery from his latest surgery. Their income comes from Howards retirement, Kelly's caregiving job and the Farmers Markets. She had to take a leave from her job and they have been unable to do any markets this year.

~Backstory~

Howards journey started early 2024 when he noticed a spot on his nose. He had went in to have it biopsied in June of 2024, they were told it was cancer and that he needed to see a specialist to go in and get clean margins. They needed to removed 3/4 of his nose and bone to do so. July of 2024, he went in to have his nose reconstructed. The reconstruction consisted of taking a vein from is arm for blood flow, a piece of his forehead to reconstruct his nose, a piece from his stomach to patch his fore head and a piece of his neck that was used for his lip. We can all try to imagine how painful that was to go through and the healing process. We will never get close to knowing how it really felt for Howard, but in true Howard fashion he pushed through with a smirk on his face, loads of sarcastic jokes and endless stubbornness. We now fast forward to Spring of 2025, the wounds are healed but the pain is only getting worse, Howards vision is getting blurry and was losing a significant amount of weight. By May 27th, Howard and Kelly wasn't taking no for an answer and they headed to Beaumont. Howard was admitted and they found he had an infection in his sinuses and he needed surgery. This surgery found a mass in his cheek that was the culprit of is blurred vison, they sent it out to be biopsied to see if it was an infection or worse.

June 3rd, Howard was able to come home to recover and wait for the results. Thankfully the wait was short, They received the call July 4th... The cancer was in his sinuses up around eye and cheek bone, the only way to remove the cancer is to remove his eye, part of the eye socket, cheek bone and jaw and then follow up with radiation. They met with the doctors and scheduled his surgery for July 27th. Unfortunately Howard started taking a turn for the worst. The pain and pressure was taking all the energy out of him, and he had lost 15lbs. Kelly knew there was no other choice but to take him to Beaumont and stay until surgery day. For those 11 days Kelly stayed by his side all day and came home to be with the boys at night, during one of the first couple trips home the A/C went out in her van, she had a couple other people look at it and it was going to need some work done. It was decided it wasn't worth putting the money into it, so a good friend loaned her a vehicle to get her back and fourth.

~The latest surgery~

It was finally the day for surgery, the cancer was removed and so was his eye, cheek and part of his jaw. The opening was closed with part of his thigh, so he was let with an extremely large incision on his leg. They kept him sedated and on a ventilator, so they could slowly wake him up. You can never under estimate Howard, his stubbornness is what makes him, him and what gets him through they insanely tough times. It only took Howard 12 days to get thrown out of the hospital, just kidding. That was also 12 long days for Kelly sleeping in a hospital chair and only leaving his side for food and a shower.

Howard and Kelly returned home July 9th, the boys were over the moon to have them home! They are now settled in to a routine of home health care nurses, endless doctors appointments. This week has been sprinkled with challenges and only wins. As the coffee lover the Howard is, he has been sitting in the side lines watching the morning and some mid day coffee being sipped and just waiting for the day. The day finally came! It wasn't the same since it had to be through a straw and thickened, but he got his coffee. He is now drinking ensure, trying to get to a new normal. His biggest personal challenge was getting back out into the world, that wasn't a doctors office. If you know Kelly and Howard, then you know they are a big part of Columbiaville and the community. They have been selling honey, soaps, balms, chapstick and more at the Farmers Market for years, it is like a second home to them and the boys. So why not get out and see the second family you've missed this year. Getting out is a challenge due to his leg still healing and being in bed for so long and of course the internal part, of what other people are going to think or say. People can be mean, ignorant, curious or kind....

The unknown is scary, so is finding a new normal. Any little bit to help lighten the load would be beyond appreciated. If you cannot donate, please pay it forward with kindness and respect.