Paul and Jeff need a bit of nice for a change
Donation protected
As his picture depicts, Paul Kenney (Paulie) is a very contemplative man who is wise beyond his years (at least, his years in ‘this life’s journey’ he would tell you… sometimes in earnest).
Paul was born in 1960 and was welcomed by his adoptive parents when he was just about two years old. He’s a middle-kid, with an older sister (Jean) and a younger brother (John). His dad passed away some years ago and his mother, who is on her own journey with Alzheimer’s disease, is living in a specialized care environment just outside of Toronto. He loves his mom, but he also very softly acknowledges that she doesn’t know him anymore and still finds comfort in knowing that she is well cared for and at peace with the life she has lived.
Several decades ago, Paul married his long-time sweetheart, Evelyn and together they had four beautiful children, Brock, Chad, Brittney, and Zachary. Paul’s love for Evelyn and their love for those kids is undeniable… they are so incredibly proud. Sadly, Chad passed away some years ago… Paul thinks about him every single day, especially now.
While Paul and Evelyn remain very close to this day, Paul met his partner, Jeff, in 1994… and they’ve been together as soul-mates (almost) since. Bonus… Jeff and Evelyn have an amazing relationship too and wouldn’t have it any other way – especially for the kids. And, incidentally, when Paul and Jeff started their life together, Paul very warmly and lovingly welcomed Jeff’s children, Amanda and Ashley, too. So… fast-forward a couple of decades… today, Paul is dad to five amazing kids, dad-in-law to an incredible daughter-in-law, Alana, and “Papa” to four grandbabies, Cassandra, Kloey, Alexander, and Isack.
In his (much) younger years, Paul was a paramedic… this is when his passion for health and public health was born. He also spent some time working in a speech pathology clinic for children, and then he found a niche as an advocate and activist in the HIV/AIDS community. He worked, for many years and in its earliest days, at CATIE (“Canada’s source for HIV and hepatitis C information”). From there, he answered a call to public service and moved to Ottawa to focus on a long and amazing career at Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada where he held several diverse portfolios. Today, he is a senior analyst in audit and evaluation for the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada.
And, adding to this most-brilliant résumé, Paul dove in, head-first, to one of his most significant passions about six years ago… Mindfulness and Meditation. He invested so much time, energy, and commitment to complete an intensive training program in Sedona, Arizona to become a Certified Mindfulness and Meditation Instructor. He graduated (with ease) and immediately committed himself to sharing (and teaching) as much as he could as part of the federal government’s workplace wellness initiative, and in HIV-related community-based settings (most notably at the AIDS Committee of Ottawa).
So, here is the tough bit… this amazing man, partner, father, grandpa, colleague, friend, and mentor was diagnosed with a very aggressive, metastatic gastro-intestinal cancer on February 14, 2019… out of nowhere and without warning! His world turned upside down in a burp… and so did the world of the people who love him (too many to count, really). This, after stepping up and enduring more than 24 months as primary care-giver for Jeff while he struggled to survive two major strokes, more than six mini-strokes, a blood-brain infection that nearly killed him, and a bunch of other life-threatening issues (on top of a 25+-year life with HIV). Really?! While most of us would find it very difficult to be “mindful” or to “meditate” our way through what is positive about any of this… Paul doesn’t find it difficult at all. He embraced his diagnosis as part of his life’s journey. At first, he wasn’t prepared to fight it… but that didn’t last long. Despite knowing (and accepting) that his prognosis is grim, Paul is determined to live… to live at least for one last summer in his beloved backyard oasis in the country!
Paul does know that we’re making this GoFundMe effort… he doesn’t really want the attention, but he is humbled and grateful to the n-th degree. If funds are raised, this is how Paulie has indicated that he would like them utilized:
- He would like to explore some complementary and alternative therapies while he fights this. He loves a massage. He thinks he might like some hypnotherapy for pain management. He thinks that he might benefit from some Reiki too.
- Given the type of cancer Paul is fighting, we know that he will need a whole bunch of dietary and nutrition counselling and supplements (not all covered by his federal government health insurance).
- Paul will need an extraordinary arsenal of medical supplies that are not covered by insurance. He’ll need gloves, gowns, masks, specific cleaning supplies (for when bodily fluids are expelled during treatment… especially during the home-infusion segments of his chemotherapy), etc.
- On top of that, it isn’t clear yet but is likely that additional home-care nursing (and/or palliative care) support will be required in the coming weeks/months. We’re not sure how much of this will be covered by health insurance benefits… but we want to be prepared.
- Paul and Jeff are faced with a journey that includes numerous trips from their rural residence to medical and other critical clinical appointments in the city. Transportation and parking costs will be significant, and they are not covered by Paul’s insurance benefits.
- Because Jeff remains quite limited in terms of what he can do around the house (post-stroke), and given that Paul was primarily responsible for everything over the last couple of years, funds raised through this medium will provide a way for Paul (and Jeff) to engage the support of commercial services that will help them keep their home clean and their property maintained.
- And finally, there is no question that Paul’s illness lends itself to significant weight loss (he’s losing about a pound-per-day right now). Funds raised by way of this medium will make it easier to purchase new, more-fitting clothes for Paul at a time when wardrobe concerns were far from top-of-mind.
There should be little doubt in the mind of prospective donors to this campaign… every single dollar will be received and appreciated in ways that defy adequate description… for Paul, and for Jeff. Paul has so freely given of himself in so many ways, for so very, very long. This is the last thing he ever imagined needing (and he would never ask for it himself). Simply put, there really are no words to describe how grateful Paul (and Jeff) will be if this campaign helps to make this journey-of-a-lifetime easier to navigate! Paul is and will be eternally grateful… and so will Jeff.
Paul was born in 1960 and was welcomed by his adoptive parents when he was just about two years old. He’s a middle-kid, with an older sister (Jean) and a younger brother (John). His dad passed away some years ago and his mother, who is on her own journey with Alzheimer’s disease, is living in a specialized care environment just outside of Toronto. He loves his mom, but he also very softly acknowledges that she doesn’t know him anymore and still finds comfort in knowing that she is well cared for and at peace with the life she has lived.
Several decades ago, Paul married his long-time sweetheart, Evelyn and together they had four beautiful children, Brock, Chad, Brittney, and Zachary. Paul’s love for Evelyn and their love for those kids is undeniable… they are so incredibly proud. Sadly, Chad passed away some years ago… Paul thinks about him every single day, especially now.
While Paul and Evelyn remain very close to this day, Paul met his partner, Jeff, in 1994… and they’ve been together as soul-mates (almost) since. Bonus… Jeff and Evelyn have an amazing relationship too and wouldn’t have it any other way – especially for the kids. And, incidentally, when Paul and Jeff started their life together, Paul very warmly and lovingly welcomed Jeff’s children, Amanda and Ashley, too. So… fast-forward a couple of decades… today, Paul is dad to five amazing kids, dad-in-law to an incredible daughter-in-law, Alana, and “Papa” to four grandbabies, Cassandra, Kloey, Alexander, and Isack.
In his (much) younger years, Paul was a paramedic… this is when his passion for health and public health was born. He also spent some time working in a speech pathology clinic for children, and then he found a niche as an advocate and activist in the HIV/AIDS community. He worked, for many years and in its earliest days, at CATIE (“Canada’s source for HIV and hepatitis C information”). From there, he answered a call to public service and moved to Ottawa to focus on a long and amazing career at Health Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada where he held several diverse portfolios. Today, he is a senior analyst in audit and evaluation for the Public Health Agency of Canada and Health Canada.
And, adding to this most-brilliant résumé, Paul dove in, head-first, to one of his most significant passions about six years ago… Mindfulness and Meditation. He invested so much time, energy, and commitment to complete an intensive training program in Sedona, Arizona to become a Certified Mindfulness and Meditation Instructor. He graduated (with ease) and immediately committed himself to sharing (and teaching) as much as he could as part of the federal government’s workplace wellness initiative, and in HIV-related community-based settings (most notably at the AIDS Committee of Ottawa).
So, here is the tough bit… this amazing man, partner, father, grandpa, colleague, friend, and mentor was diagnosed with a very aggressive, metastatic gastro-intestinal cancer on February 14, 2019… out of nowhere and without warning! His world turned upside down in a burp… and so did the world of the people who love him (too many to count, really). This, after stepping up and enduring more than 24 months as primary care-giver for Jeff while he struggled to survive two major strokes, more than six mini-strokes, a blood-brain infection that nearly killed him, and a bunch of other life-threatening issues (on top of a 25+-year life with HIV). Really?! While most of us would find it very difficult to be “mindful” or to “meditate” our way through what is positive about any of this… Paul doesn’t find it difficult at all. He embraced his diagnosis as part of his life’s journey. At first, he wasn’t prepared to fight it… but that didn’t last long. Despite knowing (and accepting) that his prognosis is grim, Paul is determined to live… to live at least for one last summer in his beloved backyard oasis in the country!
Paul does know that we’re making this GoFundMe effort… he doesn’t really want the attention, but he is humbled and grateful to the n-th degree. If funds are raised, this is how Paulie has indicated that he would like them utilized:
- He would like to explore some complementary and alternative therapies while he fights this. He loves a massage. He thinks he might like some hypnotherapy for pain management. He thinks that he might benefit from some Reiki too.
- Given the type of cancer Paul is fighting, we know that he will need a whole bunch of dietary and nutrition counselling and supplements (not all covered by his federal government health insurance).
- Paul will need an extraordinary arsenal of medical supplies that are not covered by insurance. He’ll need gloves, gowns, masks, specific cleaning supplies (for when bodily fluids are expelled during treatment… especially during the home-infusion segments of his chemotherapy), etc.
- On top of that, it isn’t clear yet but is likely that additional home-care nursing (and/or palliative care) support will be required in the coming weeks/months. We’re not sure how much of this will be covered by health insurance benefits… but we want to be prepared.
- Paul and Jeff are faced with a journey that includes numerous trips from their rural residence to medical and other critical clinical appointments in the city. Transportation and parking costs will be significant, and they are not covered by Paul’s insurance benefits.
- Because Jeff remains quite limited in terms of what he can do around the house (post-stroke), and given that Paul was primarily responsible for everything over the last couple of years, funds raised through this medium will provide a way for Paul (and Jeff) to engage the support of commercial services that will help them keep their home clean and their property maintained.
- And finally, there is no question that Paul’s illness lends itself to significant weight loss (he’s losing about a pound-per-day right now). Funds raised by way of this medium will make it easier to purchase new, more-fitting clothes for Paul at a time when wardrobe concerns were far from top-of-mind.
There should be little doubt in the mind of prospective donors to this campaign… every single dollar will be received and appreciated in ways that defy adequate description… for Paul, and for Jeff. Paul has so freely given of himself in so many ways, for so very, very long. This is the last thing he ever imagined needing (and he would never ask for it himself). Simply put, there really are no words to describe how grateful Paul (and Jeff) will be if this campaign helps to make this journey-of-a-lifetime easier to navigate! Paul is and will be eternally grateful… and so will Jeff.
Organizer and beneficiary
Chantal Langevin
Organizer
Greely, ON
Jeff Potts
Beneficiary
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