Maggie's Fund for Advanced Medical
Donation protected
What would you do for the woman that you love? That is the question that I am facing today. For the past 25 years of our marriage, Maggie has stood by me, supported me, and been my biggest cheerleader. Now, she needs more help than I can give her—she needs your help.
My name is Michael Triem and I am a full time student at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Il. I am beginning the process of acquiring a Masters of Arts Degree in Pastoral Ministry and Leadership (a 5 year program). I am making this request not to ask you for support to pay my educational costs, but rather, I am asking you to help support my wife’s medical needs.
My wife and I have been happily married for 25 years and we have adopted three teenagers from the State of Indiana. For the majority of our marriage (23 years), my wife Maggie has suffered from Crohn’s Disease. She, unfortunately, has the top 1% of the most aggressive form of the disease. She has undergone 7 surgeries, has a permanent ileostomy, a power port for weekly infusions, and only 5 feet of total intestinal track remaining. Because of this, Maggie is under the care of some of the world’s leading doctors in Gastrointestinal Disease at the University of Chicago Hospital. In 2014, for the first time ever, doctors were able to use a medicine to combat the disease and finally put the Crohn’s in remission. This comes at a cost however. Our insurance is currently being billed for roughly $320,000/year for this treatment. Without this medicine, the Crohn’s will come out of remission and will likely destroy the remaining intestinal tract. It is fair to say that her health and her longevity are a very serious issue for us. Regardless of all of this, Maggie has been incredibly positive, strong, courageous, and uplifting to those around her. Both Maggie and I decided many years ago we would not let the disease control our lives and we would live life to the best of her ability.
Through our trials, we have both found a deep love and faith in God. Through our relationship with God, I have received a call to ministry. In years past, I have tried to get a degree via online classes. However, I found the stress of a full time job, school, managing to care for Maggie, spending quality time with our adopted children (which they have never had before), serving as a mentor for veterans in the Porter County Veterans Court, and teaching a weekly marriage class to 70 people to be too much.
Because of this, I have stopped mentoring, temporarily stop teaching, and left work to become a full time student at Moody Bible Institute. God has blessed me in so many ways and I have a passion to help those in need. My trials have been blessings, I have learned so much from them all. He has blessed me with leadership traits and skill sets that reach many different cultures and educational levels of society. This degree will help me fine-tune these skills and hone me into the person God wants me to be.
I am with much humility asking for funds to cover the cost of our current insurance (which provides coverage for the advanced care that Maggie needs) and medical expenses (ileostomy supplies, weekly infusions, medicine, and routine doctor visits) for Maggie for the five years I am in college. At the end of the 5 years, I will have my degree, I will be employed, and I will be able to support Maggie’s medical needs once again. Our goal is to raise $55,000.
If you have gotten this far in our post, then we truly thank you for taking the time to read this. If you are donating to help us cover Maggie’s medical costs, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts (words cannot express the thanks we have for any donation we receive.) Your donation will allow Maggie to continue to receive the life saving treatment she needs, while I receive a higher education. I have spent the past 20+ years serving my country and now I plan to invest in a higher education so that I may serve the world. Your donation is helping more than one person or more than just one family, your donation will ultimately have an impact on an untold number of lives. All I can offer is my utmost gratitude and the reassurance that I plan to have a significant positive impact on the lives of those I touch. I will use my talents, passion, compassion, wisdom, and leadership to enrich the lives of those around me.
**SEE UPDATES FOR A HISTORY OF MAGGIE’S HEALTH.
My name is Michael Triem and I am a full time student at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Il. I am beginning the process of acquiring a Masters of Arts Degree in Pastoral Ministry and Leadership (a 5 year program). I am making this request not to ask you for support to pay my educational costs, but rather, I am asking you to help support my wife’s medical needs.
My wife and I have been happily married for 25 years and we have adopted three teenagers from the State of Indiana. For the majority of our marriage (23 years), my wife Maggie has suffered from Crohn’s Disease. She, unfortunately, has the top 1% of the most aggressive form of the disease. She has undergone 7 surgeries, has a permanent ileostomy, a power port for weekly infusions, and only 5 feet of total intestinal track remaining. Because of this, Maggie is under the care of some of the world’s leading doctors in Gastrointestinal Disease at the University of Chicago Hospital. In 2014, for the first time ever, doctors were able to use a medicine to combat the disease and finally put the Crohn’s in remission. This comes at a cost however. Our insurance is currently being billed for roughly $320,000/year for this treatment. Without this medicine, the Crohn’s will come out of remission and will likely destroy the remaining intestinal tract. It is fair to say that her health and her longevity are a very serious issue for us. Regardless of all of this, Maggie has been incredibly positive, strong, courageous, and uplifting to those around her. Both Maggie and I decided many years ago we would not let the disease control our lives and we would live life to the best of her ability.
Through our trials, we have both found a deep love and faith in God. Through our relationship with God, I have received a call to ministry. In years past, I have tried to get a degree via online classes. However, I found the stress of a full time job, school, managing to care for Maggie, spending quality time with our adopted children (which they have never had before), serving as a mentor for veterans in the Porter County Veterans Court, and teaching a weekly marriage class to 70 people to be too much.
Because of this, I have stopped mentoring, temporarily stop teaching, and left work to become a full time student at Moody Bible Institute. God has blessed me in so many ways and I have a passion to help those in need. My trials have been blessings, I have learned so much from them all. He has blessed me with leadership traits and skill sets that reach many different cultures and educational levels of society. This degree will help me fine-tune these skills and hone me into the person God wants me to be.
I am with much humility asking for funds to cover the cost of our current insurance (which provides coverage for the advanced care that Maggie needs) and medical expenses (ileostomy supplies, weekly infusions, medicine, and routine doctor visits) for Maggie for the five years I am in college. At the end of the 5 years, I will have my degree, I will be employed, and I will be able to support Maggie’s medical needs once again. Our goal is to raise $55,000.
If you have gotten this far in our post, then we truly thank you for taking the time to read this. If you are donating to help us cover Maggie’s medical costs, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts (words cannot express the thanks we have for any donation we receive.) Your donation will allow Maggie to continue to receive the life saving treatment she needs, while I receive a higher education. I have spent the past 20+ years serving my country and now I plan to invest in a higher education so that I may serve the world. Your donation is helping more than one person or more than just one family, your donation will ultimately have an impact on an untold number of lives. All I can offer is my utmost gratitude and the reassurance that I plan to have a significant positive impact on the lives of those I touch. I will use my talents, passion, compassion, wisdom, and leadership to enrich the lives of those around me.
**SEE UPDATES FOR A HISTORY OF MAGGIE’S HEALTH.
Organizer
Michael Triem
Organizer
Portage, IN
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