Standing Strong: Help Support Chris Cretelle’s Fight Against Cancer & Protect

Their Home

Hi, I’m Joe. My brother-in-law is Chris Cretelle, a 64 year old father and grandfather. He

and my sister Tracy have faced unimaginable hardship in the past 10 months. Chris was

diagnosed with cancer on January 8, 2025. It was Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and it had

already begun to spread throughout his body. Chris began chemotherapy immediately.

The treatments have been grueling, but he has faithfully attended every chemo session,

even though he has been so ill he has spent more than seven months mostly confined to

bed.

Chris is a great guy, and has always been the rock of the family. He’s a hard worker.

He’s done a lot of construction, but has worked in other jobs too. Tracy was a teacher

until recently. They are the kindest people you’d ever care to meet. They’d give you the

shirt off their backs. Chris and Tracy have done so much for so many people. They’ve

even taken people into their home. Now they’re struggling to keep that home. The bank

wants to foreclose on their mortgage, even though Chris is still in recovery from cancer.

There have been many other problems in the past year.

Just two weeks before Chris was diagnosed with cancer, Tracy’s mother Sharlene was

admitted to the hospital with heart failure. It was there she received devastating news:

she was in end-stage cancer and had only about two months to live. While still reeling

from this, Tracy’s stepfather, Carm, also suffered heart failure and required an

emergency pacemaker. He was already living with moderate dementia. Sharlene passed

away on February 25, 2025.

Just as the family began to adjust to life without Sharlene, tragedy struck again in June,

when our youngest sister, Dianne, passed away suddenly. Because she had no will, no

spouse, and no children, Tracy and our siblings had to settle her entire estate, resulting

in additional costs to the family.

To manage care for her parents, support Chris through treatment, and keep both

households running, Tracy was forced to take early retirement. She has been cooking,

cleaning, paying bills, buying groceries, and handling endless medical responsibilities,

often for two homes at once.

During this time, friends, neighbors, and extended family truly became a lifeline. They

brought dinners, helped with errands, visited when possible, and donated their time

whenever the family needed support. Their generosity has been a blessing.

While fighting cancer, supporting the family, and navigating overwhelming grief, Chris

and Tracy have struggled to keep up with essential housing costs. The threat of

foreclosure now hangs over them - at a time when Chris needs the stability of home

more than ever.

Why This Fundraiser Matters

Your support will help the Cretelle family cover:

• Ongoing cancer treatments, medications, and specialist care, which include chemotherapy that is not covered by their insurance.

• Mortgage payments and utilities to prevent foreclosure

• Medical supplies and transportation to and from appointments

• Living expenses during Chris’s months-long inability to work

• Costs related to caring for Tracy’s parents

• Final expenses and estate-related costs after Dianne’s passing

This isn’t just a fundraiser. It is a lifeline—an opportunity to give Chris and Tracy a

measure of relief after months of heartbreak.

How You Can Help

✅ Donate—every amount makes a difference

✅ Share this campaign with your community

✅ Offer messages of support to lift Chris and Tracy’s spirits

✅ Pray or keep them in your thoughts as they continue this incredibly difficult journey

The Cretelles have endured more in ten months than many face in a lifetime. With your

help, they can keep their home, continue Chris’s treatment, and begin rebuilding stability

after so much loss.

From the bottom of their hearts—and mine—thank you for showing this family that they

are not facing this alone