Help Us Fight COVID-19 & Cancer
We have created this fundraiser in hopes of helping to ease the burden of our parent's continually growing financial bills for 2020.
Terry's Story
In March of 2020, our father Terry was diagnosed with Bladder Cancer. He underwent surgery, hoping it would be an easy fix. Three months later at his follow-up, we learned his tumor had already grown back. He underwent another surgery as well as chemotherapy. In September, he was unable to get his follow-up procedure to check on the success of the chemotherapy due to a severe bladder infection. He re-scheduled his follow-up procedure for November, but COVID had other plans in mind.
On November 15th, our father tested positive for COVID-19 after a few days of feeling like he had a sinus infection. He was doing well at home until the morning of November 25th when he woke up unable to catch his breath. My mother took him to the Emergency Room and he was then admitted to Akron General for oxygen requirements due to COVID-19. As of today, our father is still in the hospital. His stay has been complicated by respiratory issues, a GI bleed, a potential seizure, pneumonia, and now cardiac complications. He was in the ICU for eight days on high levels of oxygen and medications to help keep his blood pressure up to normal levels. Now he is lucky enough to be on a regular nursing floor; however, it sounds like his stay is far from over as they are discussing the need for a pacemaker due to continuous episodes of passing out. Besides his new cancer diagnosis this year, our father was very healthy. These medical issues have all been complications from this terrible virus.
Our Mission
Please help us ease the stress of our father’s lengthy COVID-19 hospital stay and cancer treatments. Upon discharge, we want our mom and dad to focus on time together instead of worrying about finances. Your donation will help us give back to this incredible couple who have spent their lifetime putting others first. We plan to put any money raised to help pay off medical bills from his previous cancer treatments, bills from his complicated hospital course, supplies he will need when he comes home (new medications, a walker, etc.), and towards future cancer treatment. As part of my father's cancer treatment, he is required to have procedures every three months with potential surgeries and chemotherapy. It is also unknown whether or not he will be able to come home after discharge from the hospital. They have mentioned the possibility of needing an acute rehab center, so any donations would also go towards this if needed.
About Our Parents
Our parents, Terry and Patty, have dedicated their lives to caring for others. Our dad was a special education teacher who volunteered his time rehabbing injured animals. In addition to raising 3 daughters, our mom provided care for several of our grandparents as well as coached our grade school volleyball teams. In the early 2000s, our mom and dad converted their barn into an animal rescue shelter. Since then, they have volunteered their time rescuing and coordinating adoptions for stray animals and helping to take care of their nieces and nephew.
Thank you for helping us to provide our parents some comfort during this challenging time! YOU have a made a difference in our lives! Every dollar counts! If you are unable to donate, sharing our page can make all the difference! We also hope that by sharing our story, it will help spread awareness that this virus is REAL and how it can take a toll on the life of a loved one. We want to prevent any other families from having to go through this nightmare. We appreciate you taking the time to read our story. We wish you a happy and healthy holiday season and New Year! 
