Help Emily come home for diagnosis of lung illness

Dear friends and kind strangers,

My dear friend, 23-year-old Emily Massell was hospitalized last week in Ecuador with an unknown but serious lung illness. The doctors there are struggling to diagnose her and even perforated her lung accidentally during a biopsy. They say she may have anything from cancer to tuberculosis.

Emily is a U.S. citizen and needs a Medevac flight home, but the expense is impossible for her family. The funding for her medical bills is also running out. Her sister is with her, but her family is going through hell trying to bring her home for a proper diagnosis and a higher level of care.

Emily is a beautiful, thoughtful, genuine soul who is always thinking of her family and others. Please help her in this crisis, and if you can't donate, please pray for her and her family.

Thank you!


UPDATE, 2:20pm Thursday from Mary Massell:

Thank you all for your love, prayers, and support! Emily and Sarah have drawn great comfort from the outpouring of love and encouragement they’ve received. 


Emily is in a critical state. One of her lungs has collapsed, and the doctors are still unclear as to her diagnosis.


As soon as Emily is stable, her family would like to MedEvac her to the U.S.


Emily’s insurance emphatically refused to cover the transport, and the American Embassy has similarly provided little support, other than to provide a list of private MedEvac services. This expense will have to come out of pocket, and will be in the 50-70K range.

If you’d like to send Emily and Sarah a message directly, please email them at: [email redacted]


Thank you for your generosity and please continue to pray and share, share, share!

UPDATE, 1:48am Friday:

Thank you so, so much to everyone who has been so generous in helping to bring Emily home! Emily and her family have been blown away by how big the hearts of everyone are.

The financial goal has been raised to $60k in hopes that Emily's family can cover the cost of a MedEvac flight to Phoenix, Arizona. Please keep praying she can make it home!

UPDATE: WE ARE ON THE HOME-STRETCH, 3:50pm Thursday, March 28


We are overwhelmed by the love and support Emily has received through this campaign. As of this update, we are a little over 40k. This is a miracle!


We have found a wonderful MedEvac company that has worked with Emily’s complex situation. They are ready to take her, despite certain mitigating circumstances that we can’t share at present.

Once we have the remaining funds, we’ll be able to bring her home.


From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for your prayers and support. There was a period of time last week when we thought Emily was fighting her final battle, and it was the tremendous outpouring of love that gave her the strength to keep fighting.


God bless!

UPDATE: Emily will come home on Saturday! 11:55am Wednesday, April 3

We have reached the amount needed to pay for Emily's medical escort home!! Emily's MedEvac is scheduled for this Saturday, and the $60k will pay for that flight.

Her family is in disbelief about how generous everyone has been, and they thank each one of you from the bottom of their hearts.

Two weeks ago, I was expecting a call any minute telling me Emily's final battle was over. We thought it would be impossible to cobble together the funds to bring her home in time, but by the grace of God she has been able to hang on!

The only remaining obstacle (and you can't make this stuff up) is that debris from an avalanche has temporarily blocked the road from the airport to where Emily is staying, so please pray that it will be cleared in time for her transport.

Emily's older sister, Mary, has asked me to share this prayer for her safe transport home.

Dear Saint Bernadette, Chosen by Almighty God as a channel of His Graces and Blessings, and through your humble obedience to the requests of Our Blessed Mother, Mary, you gained for us the Miraculous waters of Spiritual and physical healing. We implore you to listen to our pleading prayers that we may be healed of our Spiritual and physical imperfections. Place our petitions in the Hands of our Holy Mother, Mary, so that She may place them at the feet of Her beloved Son, Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, that He may look on us with mercy and compassion (make petition).