Support Josh Wolf: Hurricane Relief and Fighting Lymphoma

Hello friends! Sorrel here from Mergoat Magazine.

Hurricane Helene has presented our region with an enormous challenge. After a year of massive challenges, Josh Wolf of Valdosta, GA is a Mergoat community member who has been directly impacted by Helene. I am going to share some of his story below -- please give generously to this beloved human! Your support will provide enormous relief for someone who we know to be deeply kind and generous.

This year has truly been a bottomless well of hard news for Josh Wolf, a regional photographer we have worked with in relation to documenting the Okefenokee Swamp’s history and its current threats.

On September 6 of last year, Josh had surgery to remove a mass that had appeared on his arm.

The removal of this mass led to a diagnosis of of diffuse large B cell Lymphoma on October 10, 2023.

The rest of October was spent undergoing tests, procedures and diagnostics--which led physicians to administer several rounds of chemotherapy through January 2024.

Once the rounds of chemo were complete, Josh returned to work a month later. A week after his return, he found out that his company would be canceling their insurance plan. Then, a month later, he was laid off by the same company.

After months of job insecurity and stressful encounters with the medical system, Hurricane Helen came to Josh’s home. When we first messaged Josh to check in, he recounted: “The room I slept in took the most damage. It flooded. I got alot out of it, but haven’t been able to go back in to see what I lost.”

Faced with this series of personal tragedies, Josh said, “I think what makes me saddest is that the tree is almost 300 years old. The tree has withstood so many storms, but it couldn’t keep up with the ever strengthening storms we’re having. And it’s a white oak which is pretty rare down here.” This statement is a reflection of the caring person we have come to know and love in Josh Wolf.

Please give generously to provide some relief for Josh! Let's give him the love and care her needs and deserves during this time!