Kelly's Fight to Beat Cancer
Donation protected
Dear Friends and Community:
Hello, It’s Pat Valks and I want to tell you about a very important concern impacting my dear daughter Kelly and her family. Kelly is my only child and the 41-year-old mother of my beautiful, smart and loving 14 year old granddaughter Bailey. Together they live with Nick, Kelly’s amazing and supportive partner. Kelly has been a devoted community support worker for 2.5 years, a professional service job she truly loves. My daughter has a huge heart and I know she does her very best every day to show love, kindness and compassion. That’s my Girl!
Kelly, Pat, Nick and Bailey
Our Lives Have Changed
What began as a seemingly simple digestive condition, progressed to a life challenging health crisis. I have watched my daughter move from extreme discomfort and distress to the shock of being officially diagnosed with Colorectal Cancer in April 2019 (Stage 3). That was the day our lives changed.
Like many families, it was already essential for both Kelly and her partner to work full time just to make ends meet, so the stress of the diagnosis and knowing that she would be unable to work for well over a year has been indescribable. It came as quite a surprise just how many medical expenses are not covered by insurance.
It took everything I had emotionally to hold my attention strong and firm to Kelly’s getting better as a priority and that we would find ways to help ease some of this little family’s financial burden so the focus could be on the healing journey ahead.
The Healing Journey
This is the first time anyone in our family has gone through anything like this so we were pretty much a mess! To all our relief, it was explained to us that this kind of cancer was treatable with high chances of positive outcome and given that Kelly is young, it was expected to go very well. Kelly has received a series of radiation treatments here in Victoria along with chemotherapy. She has since had two major surgeries, and the most recent cancer tumour removal was successful. She’s now recovering at home, waiting for the next surgery mid November in her home town of Nanaimo. This will be to reestablish her digestive tract to work on its own again and begin the post care plan which will last several months. The whole process is expected to take 1.5 years or more during which her doctor said she is not to work. It’s a long haul but I’m feeling relieved about how well things have progressed so far and I’m confident her healing will continue to improve as it has done.
We are so pleased and relieved to say Kelly is doing very well physically with positive reports from her doctor about her progress. Other than her feeling exhausted most of the time, financial concerns remain the biggest challenge.
Although she will be receiving medical disability funds in the future, currently they are nearly out of funds completely for even the basics of food and rent for the next few months. My concern remains with, not only my daughter’s health and well-being, but also how the financial stress is negatively impacting Kelly’s healing process. I believe it is important that my daughter can focus on a healing path so that she and her family can, in time, return to their lives the best way they can with health and vitality restored. We all wish to move through this experience, humbled with grateful hearts that this life transforming journey will be complete.
Fundraising and Donations
We have been ‘over the moon’ with the love and support so far, not just financial but with the outpouring of such kindness, prayers, emotional support and love. I am humbled by the circle of love that surrounds us more than words can express. Thank you to each and every person who has reached out to lend a helping hand, through fundraising efforts, donations, and loving support. Honestly I don’t know how they would have made it this far without all this kind assistance. It is said that it takes a village to raise a child, I also believe it takes a village to heal a child. Kelly is my daughter and I am grateful that so many of you are helping me to help her, supporting us in a challenging time. We feel, as one friend told us, ‘Held in the hands of Light’.
Thank you all from the bottom of my heart, today, tomorrow and on the road ahead.
With love and gratitude,
Pat Valks and family.
Hello, It’s Pat Valks and I want to tell you about a very important concern impacting my dear daughter Kelly and her family. Kelly is my only child and the 41-year-old mother of my beautiful, smart and loving 14 year old granddaughter Bailey. Together they live with Nick, Kelly’s amazing and supportive partner. Kelly has been a devoted community support worker for 2.5 years, a professional service job she truly loves. My daughter has a huge heart and I know she does her very best every day to show love, kindness and compassion. That’s my Girl!
Kelly, Pat, Nick and Bailey
Our Lives Have Changed
What began as a seemingly simple digestive condition, progressed to a life challenging health crisis. I have watched my daughter move from extreme discomfort and distress to the shock of being officially diagnosed with Colorectal Cancer in April 2019 (Stage 3). That was the day our lives changed.
Like many families, it was already essential for both Kelly and her partner to work full time just to make ends meet, so the stress of the diagnosis and knowing that she would be unable to work for well over a year has been indescribable. It came as quite a surprise just how many medical expenses are not covered by insurance.
It took everything I had emotionally to hold my attention strong and firm to Kelly’s getting better as a priority and that we would find ways to help ease some of this little family’s financial burden so the focus could be on the healing journey ahead.
The Healing Journey
This is the first time anyone in our family has gone through anything like this so we were pretty much a mess! To all our relief, it was explained to us that this kind of cancer was treatable with high chances of positive outcome and given that Kelly is young, it was expected to go very well. Kelly has received a series of radiation treatments here in Victoria along with chemotherapy. She has since had two major surgeries, and the most recent cancer tumour removal was successful. She’s now recovering at home, waiting for the next surgery mid November in her home town of Nanaimo. This will be to reestablish her digestive tract to work on its own again and begin the post care plan which will last several months. The whole process is expected to take 1.5 years or more during which her doctor said she is not to work. It’s a long haul but I’m feeling relieved about how well things have progressed so far and I’m confident her healing will continue to improve as it has done.
We are so pleased and relieved to say Kelly is doing very well physically with positive reports from her doctor about her progress. Other than her feeling exhausted most of the time, financial concerns remain the biggest challenge.
Although she will be receiving medical disability funds in the future, currently they are nearly out of funds completely for even the basics of food and rent for the next few months. My concern remains with, not only my daughter’s health and well-being, but also how the financial stress is negatively impacting Kelly’s healing process. I believe it is important that my daughter can focus on a healing path so that she and her family can, in time, return to their lives the best way they can with health and vitality restored. We all wish to move through this experience, humbled with grateful hearts that this life transforming journey will be complete.
Fundraising and Donations
We have been ‘over the moon’ with the love and support so far, not just financial but with the outpouring of such kindness, prayers, emotional support and love. I am humbled by the circle of love that surrounds us more than words can express. Thank you to each and every person who has reached out to lend a helping hand, through fundraising efforts, donations, and loving support. Honestly I don’t know how they would have made it this far without all this kind assistance. It is said that it takes a village to raise a child, I also believe it takes a village to heal a child. Kelly is my daughter and I am grateful that so many of you are helping me to help her, supporting us in a challenging time. We feel, as one friend told us, ‘Held in the hands of Light’.
Thank you all from the bottom of my heart, today, tomorrow and on the road ahead.
With love and gratitude,
Pat Valks and family.
Fundraising team (2)
Gina Lemieux
Organizer
Victoria, BC
Kelly Valks
Beneficiary
Pat Valks
Team member
