My name is Alice, and I am the Rocky River Music Boosters president and a friend of Julie and Don MacDonald. Many of you know Julie and Don, and their amazing kids Kaitlyn and Josh, and they need our help. Julie was recently diagnosed with stage 1, grade 3 invasive ductal carcinoma. The MacDonald’s are very thankful that this was found early through routine annual mammogram. (Julie would like to remind everyone to please get their mammograms regularly!) Although this will still be a hard road, it could be much worse.

It has been a whirlwind this past month, from diagnosis to surgery to remove the cancer. The pathology came back clear with no spread to the lymph nodes. The next step in Julie’s healing journey is to begin chemotherapy, since Julie has triple-negative breast cancer (which is aggressive, tends to grow and spread fast, and is not receptive to medications that treat other types of cancer).

Don and Julie are active members of their church community, Parkside Westside. She led a Bible study in her home and volunteers in the nursery. They are blessed with a wonderful church community, where Don is an elder.

Prior to her diagnosis, Julie worked 25-30 hours a week as a counselor and intake coordinator for Fieldstone Counseling. Julie meets with women going through hard times and has a heart to encourage them and point them towards hope. Julie enjoys being with her family, friends, exercising (she is in a group fitness class at the Fairview Rec Center), walking, listening to podcasts and attending her children’s activities.

Don graduated from Rocky River High School and is a beloved math teacher in the district, teaching for over twenty years. He also has tutored many students over the years. With Julie’s treatment, he may also need to cut back on this tutoring this year.

They have enjoyed volunteering for Music Backers in the away concession stand at home football games this year, serving popcorn and hot dogs.

Julie has needed to step back from counseling as the diagnosis, doctor’s appointments, and surgery have been overwhelming, both emotionally and physically. Julie loves her job and wants to be attentive, focused, prepared to meet with others, and she is lacking that extra margin right now. As a contract counselor, she does not get paid for this time off. Julie hopes to keep up her role as the Intake Coordinator during the time of treatment, but anticipates taking a break from counseling as she undergoes her chemo treatments and recovery.

Don and Julie hope to keep life as normal as possible for their teenagers, Kaitlyn and Josh, during this time. Kaitlyn is co-captain of flags in marching band and is looking forward to some previously planned school trips, including a trip to Italy/Greece. Joshua loves baseball and trains at BioSport where he plays for Ohio Hustle. He loves pitching and also enjoys playing basketball.

The MacDonald’s have a long road ahead of them. They are trusting God’s plans and have already seen his kindness displayed through family, co-workers, friends, and neighbors. Rocky River Middle School has been a great help and support. Knowing this community, and knowing the people Julie and Don are, I invite you to continue to support them. Please donate as generously as you are able, and if you’re not able to support financially at this time, please consider sharing Julie’s story on social media if you feel called. The MacDonald’s have a strong support network in their church family and Don's coworkers at RR Middle School, and they are being supported with meals at this time.

This Go Fund Me will help cover the cost of Julie’s lost income so that the kids can continue to participate in their activities and also help to cover the medical bills not covered by insurance. Julie would also benefit from other comforts to help her go through chemo, such as purchasing a recliner. Thank you for considering supporting the MacDonald Family during this time.