Support Charlie's Battle Against Cancer

He’s the man, the myth, the legend…and now he has cancer.

Pancreatic cancer, stage III. Anyone who knows me or one of my siblings, also knows about our epic dad, his Harley, and all of his shenanigans. For any new friends who have found themselves on this page, I’d like to introduce you to our dad, Charlie:

Born to Cuban immigrants in 1961, dad was raised in El Paso, Texas. He was certainly a wild child. Brandishing a beard by the age of 12 and eternally misunderstood, dad has never been a stranger to corporal punishment. He and the yard stick became very close friends during his Catholic School days and, not to brag, but he even faced an expulsion from his first highschool. This expulsion turned out to be his saving grace as it led him into the arms of our mom, his soulmate, Patty. As dad puts it “your mother saved my life”, and if you were to hear him say it, you’d know that he means it with every fiber of his being.

At the ripe old ages of 15 and 17, mom and dad set out to start their lives together. This was against both of their parent’s wishes of course, because what kind of love story would it be if there weren’t trials and tribulations? From their love, was born a family of five. At 16 and 18 years old, they welcomed their first baby boy and named him Charlie. A few days later they laid him to rest, for he was premature and not meant for this world. At ages 20 and 22, my big brother Bobby was born. At 20 years old, dad lost his father to colon cancer. My sister Sarah and I arrived a decade later within 2 years of each other. I share these earlier events in dad’s life with you to better illustrate the experiences that molded him into the man and father he is today.

At 62 years old dad began experiencing extreme abdominal discomfort which remained a mystery illness for several months. After a number of ER visits, bloodwork, and scans, he was misdiagnosed a handful of times. Not one to complain, dad endured unimaginable suffering while simultaneously working full time and trying to heal illnesses he did not truly have. During this entire period, dad was unable to eat without intense pain. By the time we arrived at his cancer diagnosis he’d already lost over 130 lbs and continues to shrink before our eyes. This January after countless joys, celebrations, losses, and struggles, our parents still found a way to celebrate 47 years of marriage together from the unexpected location of dad’s hospital room.

Dad has worked tirelessly since the age of 15 to provide a stable life for us. What we lacked financially while growing up, dad made up for ten-fold with love, emotional support, and lots of entertaining stories. Now that we are all grown up, dad continues to give us the many things money can’t buy. As the working-class knows, stability comes with the ability to work. Dad’s diagnosis came in January of 2024, forcing him into an early retirement. No longer able to work, I will save you the frustration of the details and just say, we are working on enrolling him for medical insurance but have not qualified yet.

This series of events has put my parents in a difficult situation as they face the incoming medical bills for various hospitalizations, chemotherapy, and medical supplies. It’s difficult to put into words all the emotions that come with asking for financial help, but I’m sure anyone reading this can empathize with the desire to assist a loved one in need. Dad is physically limited in ways we never imagine our fathers will be, yet I have never seen him mentally stronger or fight harder for anything in my life.

No donation is too small. All proceeds from this GoFundMe page will go directly to dad for use towards medical and life expenses. We have every intention of kicking cancer’s ass, but kicking ass is way easier when you’re not in crippling debt! All jokes aside - If you are a praying person, please add our family to your prayers. If you’re a vibe person, send good vibes.