**UPDATE**

After multiple strokes to his cerebellum Samuel underwent a craniectomy on Sunday evening. There have been multiple ups and downs but on Tuesday Samuel had another stroke, this time to his brain stem. This has left him without ability to control his airway and many other issues. We know that unless God heals Samuel he will likely not live a normal life. We don’t know yet exactly what that means- only time will tell- but we do know it will necessitate long term medical care.

Please pray for us. Pray for Samuel’s healing, but also for his comfort as he is responsive and does seem to understand some of what is going on. Pray for Katelin as she navigates this unimaginable circumstance. Pray for Titus and Anson as they deal with this tragedy. Pray for wisdom and comfort as we walk through this valley with Samuel. If you feel led to give, know that it will go towards Sam’s long term health care and supporting Katelin and the boys.

Thank you to all who have been supporting us.

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Many of you may know Samuel. Over the last week he suffered a stroke, which was bad enough on its own, but over the last 24 hours he has deteriorated and is now looking at an extended hospital stay.

Samuel makes his living as a plumber, and recently received his Master Plumbing License. Before his condition worsened his doctors informed him that he would be unable to lift anything over ten pounds for the next three months. He will also be unable to drive. This is obviously not compatible with the many demands of being a plumber.

Currently we are waiting on more tests to be run to find out exactly what is going on and why his condition has declined. In the last 24 hours Samuel has lost some vision in one eye and has been unable to remember why he was in the hospital. He has been extremely anxious about this hospital stay and what it will mean for his future as a plumber and providing for his family. This has caused him to become more agitated. He is now under sedation to try to get him resting and to the point where more tests can be run.

We are asking for help on two fronts.

The first and most important is prayer. Please be praying for peace for Samuel so that he is able to focus on recovery and fixing the source of these issues. Please be praying for wisdom and skill for every doctor and nurse who is coming into contact with him. Please be praying for Katelin, Sam's wife, who has been beside him this entire time, and wisdom and peace for her. Finally, please be praying for his two boys, and the rest of us as we try to be there for them in any way we can.

The second is finances. Samuel is a hard worker and probably wouldn't be starting a gofundme on his own. That's why we have vetoed him and done it anyway. As it is now, we are looking at an extensive hospital stay, innumerable tests, and a long recovery. As stated before, at the very least Sam will be unable to work for three months after he gets out of the hospital, and right now the future is very uncertain. We are starting this gofundme to try and give Samuel some peace of mind about the future so that he can focus on getting healthy and spending time with his family when he gets out of the hospital. We appreciate anything you feel is appropriate to share.

Thank you to everyone who has already reached out to our family. We will try to provide updates as the situation progresses.