To save mom's life

Hello friends, my name is Monika, and I started this fundraiser with my brother Peter on behalf of our mom Anna Galikova. I call Houston my home for 20 years now; we are originally from Slovakia, and my mom moved in with me three years ago after I found myself being a single mom with twin toddlers. They have been the most amazing years because I realized how vital the role of a grandparent is for a child.

My mom was recently diagnosed with aggressive cancer called Squamous cell carcinoma on her tongue. The big C, the monster we are all afraid of. It has been such a shock for everybody, but we have no time for tears, as she needs to have her surgery ASAP since she is in a very early stage. Because my mom is still not a citizen of this country, she cannot get health insurance, and she cannot apply for any financial help for her surgery; and MD Anderson does not have any financial plan we could apply for on her behalf. We are in a crunch time to find funds, so they can remove her cancer before it starts spreading deep into her body. Since she is self-paid patient, the amount is out of our reach for my brother and I, and just the surgery is estimated at $115,476; recommended radiation will be an additional expense. We have until mid-October to pay for the surgery; otherwise, it will be canceled. Houston is the best City in the World, with the best hospitals, especially for treating cancer, but we don't have enough money to get this help for mom, the service that is within the reach.

My brother and I are trying to gather anything we can, but we need help. I've never asked for money in my life, so this is very difficult for me to do, but I have to reach out to my friends and everyone who will read this to help us. My mom is the most loving person I know. She has had an incredible impact on the upbringing of not only my children, but our friend's children as well, as she is "grandma" to everybody she knows. My mom has four grandkids and two grandsons in Heaven. She is my best friend. She is my mom. My everything. If I could, I would take this terrible disease from her and put it in my body because I do have health insurance, and I would get the care I need. But sadly, I cannot do that for her.

They say moms teach us everything, but they never teach us how to live without them. I am not ready to find out how that feels like, as I cannot imagine not having her in my life and my kids growing up without her love and guidance. So I pray this platform can help us reach out to people who understand our desperate situation.

The money we raise would pay for her surgery, so I pray that whoever reads her story would feel our love for her. PLEASE help us save my mom's life.

We thank you from the bottom of our hearts, Monika & Peter, and mom's grandchildren: Adam, Samuel, Alexandra, Lukas and our Angels Maxim and Peter

- God bless you, my friends.