Kelsie's End of Life & Family Care Fund
Donation protected
Thank you for looking at this page. Please note that the first $12,000 shown was donated two years ago (and we are still SO grateful) to cover costs associated with surgery and treatment at that time. We are now asking for help covering costs associated with end of life planning, therapy/counseling, and ongoing expenses for Justin, Anna and Olivia. Read more below.
___________________________________________
It has been sometime since we’ve updated all of you on this page. Hopefully this update won’t come as a complete surprise to most of you.
As you know, Kelsie found out about her cancer diagnosis only days before her wedding, three years ago. A year later, after much chemotherapy, she was ready for surgical intervention. It’s been two years since Kelsie’s surgery in New York City. There have been many ups and downs since then - many signs of hope, only to face disappointment again.
And yet, we can’t complain. We got two more years! Two extra years of having Kelsie around to love and to be loved by her. Two years extra years for Anna and Olivia to spend with their mom - one of the greatest moms we all know - and two more years for Justin to spend with his wife.
This update, however, is posted with a heavy heart. Kelsie has stopped all treatments. The tumors never responded to anything as well as her doctors hoped. There are no more treatment options available to her. The focus now is for Kelsie to enjoy as much life as she has left in the way that is most comfortable for her.
So what does this mean? As difficult as it is to accept and process, it means our family has moved on to end of life planning. An end that will come much too soon. And, because of COVID-19, in a way that will keep so many of us apart as we try to find a way to support the Johnson family and one another.
We are asking, once again, for any monetary donations you may be able to make to help support Kelsie and her family at this incredibly difficult time. These donations will help where insurance doesn’t cover - end of life planning, therapy/counseling, and ongoing expenses for Justin, Anna and Olivia. If you’re unable to donate, please share this page and update with people who know the family or others who may be interested in contributing. She is here and feeling well for now, but we know it won’t be more than a matter of weeks or months.
Please send your love and thoughts in the comments. Share a favorite memory or a funny story. (Just please don’t share your cures.)
All the love to you and yours in this year that just keeps getting worse. Stay safe. We love you.
IF YOU'D LIKE TO READ THE ORIGINAL GOFUNDME MESSAGE, WE'VE LEFT IT POSTED BELOW:
"The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members." Coretta Scott King
Most young couples in the days leading up to the slow procession down the aisle are filled with last minute worries, the rush of nerves, butterflies of excitement; the thrill of anticipation about the future and all that it will hold for them.
For Kelsie (Sinnock) and Justin Johnson those few days were a little different.
It was only a couple days before her wedding that Kelsie learned that the ongoing stomach pains and the bizarre lump she’d found in her midsection were most likely due to cancer. A biopsy suggested colon cancer which had metastasized to her liver. She couldn’t know anything for sure until she met with the oncologist the week following but the suggestion was there was very little “maybe” left in what she’d been told.
Of course, if you know Kelsie, you can imagine this didn’t seem to put a cloud over the special day that she’d been hoping, waiting, and planning for since the birth of her and her now husband, Justin’s, first daughter, Anna. In fact, so radiant was our bride friend, that the rain which had persisted for days, cleared away, offering her the bluest of skies and the friendliest of yellow suns beneath which to say her vows.
Just a few short days after their wedding, Kelsie and Justin made their way to Burlington to meet with the oncologist. The cancer was confirmed - stage 4 colon cancer - and a plan was made. She would have a port put into her chest and begin chemotherapy as soon as possible; treatments would take place once every two weeks for a period of three months.
These treatments have continued, through some difficulties here and there but mostly - and gratefully - with little complication for the last months. Months in which Kelsie has been amazingly and surprisingly strong and resilient, months in which she seemed to need little and asked for less.
Despite and throughout periods of fatigue and nausea, she has continued to care for her two children - Anna, who is now 3, and Olivia, now 1.
In the immediate future, however, Kelsie and Justin's story is about to take a turn that is both exciting and slightly more difficult. The good news is that Kelsie's cancer has slowly improved, one half centimeter at a time, to the point that she is able to now have surgery on her colon and hopefully later (after further improvement), on her liver. The more difficult news is that this means Kelsie and Justin are looking at spending up to a week at a time away from home in NYC while Kelsie undergoes surgery at Memorial Sloan Kittering and then several weeks of round the clock care when she returns. At this point it is likely she will have this surgery two or more times.
Those of us who are standing with the Johnson family have come together to build this fundraising page in hopes of easing some of the financial burden on the Johnson family as they move forward.
These funds will be used to help with costs not covered by insurance: the cost of hotels for family members who will be staying with Kelsie in New York, the cost of childcare, any and all costs associated with her care and with childcare when Kelsie returns from surgery in New York, the cost of groceries and gas, of housekeeping, etc., etc.
Y'all, cancer is an expensive beast.
We all, and espeically the Johnson family, appreciate your support.
**If you feel unable to donate monetarily but are interested in supporting the Johnson family as they work to successfully come through this challenging period in their lives, please leave a comment with an email address and someone will contact you. Other great ways to offer support are to purchase a prepared grocery shopping list, donate quality used kids’ clothes, gift certificates, etc.**
___________________________________________
It has been sometime since we’ve updated all of you on this page. Hopefully this update won’t come as a complete surprise to most of you.
As you know, Kelsie found out about her cancer diagnosis only days before her wedding, three years ago. A year later, after much chemotherapy, she was ready for surgical intervention. It’s been two years since Kelsie’s surgery in New York City. There have been many ups and downs since then - many signs of hope, only to face disappointment again.
And yet, we can’t complain. We got two more years! Two extra years of having Kelsie around to love and to be loved by her. Two years extra years for Anna and Olivia to spend with their mom - one of the greatest moms we all know - and two more years for Justin to spend with his wife.
This update, however, is posted with a heavy heart. Kelsie has stopped all treatments. The tumors never responded to anything as well as her doctors hoped. There are no more treatment options available to her. The focus now is for Kelsie to enjoy as much life as she has left in the way that is most comfortable for her.So what does this mean? As difficult as it is to accept and process, it means our family has moved on to end of life planning. An end that will come much too soon. And, because of COVID-19, in a way that will keep so many of us apart as we try to find a way to support the Johnson family and one another.
We are asking, once again, for any monetary donations you may be able to make to help support Kelsie and her family at this incredibly difficult time. These donations will help where insurance doesn’t cover - end of life planning, therapy/counseling, and ongoing expenses for Justin, Anna and Olivia. If you’re unable to donate, please share this page and update with people who know the family or others who may be interested in contributing. She is here and feeling well for now, but we know it won’t be more than a matter of weeks or months.
Please send your love and thoughts in the comments. Share a favorite memory or a funny story. (Just please don’t share your cures.)
All the love to you and yours in this year that just keeps getting worse. Stay safe. We love you.
IF YOU'D LIKE TO READ THE ORIGINAL GOFUNDME MESSAGE, WE'VE LEFT IT POSTED BELOW:
"The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members." Coretta Scott King
Most young couples in the days leading up to the slow procession down the aisle are filled with last minute worries, the rush of nerves, butterflies of excitement; the thrill of anticipation about the future and all that it will hold for them.
For Kelsie (Sinnock) and Justin Johnson those few days were a little different.
It was only a couple days before her wedding that Kelsie learned that the ongoing stomach pains and the bizarre lump she’d found in her midsection were most likely due to cancer. A biopsy suggested colon cancer which had metastasized to her liver. She couldn’t know anything for sure until she met with the oncologist the week following but the suggestion was there was very little “maybe” left in what she’d been told.
Of course, if you know Kelsie, you can imagine this didn’t seem to put a cloud over the special day that she’d been hoping, waiting, and planning for since the birth of her and her now husband, Justin’s, first daughter, Anna. In fact, so radiant was our bride friend, that the rain which had persisted for days, cleared away, offering her the bluest of skies and the friendliest of yellow suns beneath which to say her vows.
Just a few short days after their wedding, Kelsie and Justin made their way to Burlington to meet with the oncologist. The cancer was confirmed - stage 4 colon cancer - and a plan was made. She would have a port put into her chest and begin chemotherapy as soon as possible; treatments would take place once every two weeks for a period of three months.
These treatments have continued, through some difficulties here and there but mostly - and gratefully - with little complication for the last months. Months in which Kelsie has been amazingly and surprisingly strong and resilient, months in which she seemed to need little and asked for less.
Despite and throughout periods of fatigue and nausea, she has continued to care for her two children - Anna, who is now 3, and Olivia, now 1.
In the immediate future, however, Kelsie and Justin's story is about to take a turn that is both exciting and slightly more difficult. The good news is that Kelsie's cancer has slowly improved, one half centimeter at a time, to the point that she is able to now have surgery on her colon and hopefully later (after further improvement), on her liver. The more difficult news is that this means Kelsie and Justin are looking at spending up to a week at a time away from home in NYC while Kelsie undergoes surgery at Memorial Sloan Kittering and then several weeks of round the clock care when she returns. At this point it is likely she will have this surgery two or more times.
Those of us who are standing with the Johnson family have come together to build this fundraising page in hopes of easing some of the financial burden on the Johnson family as they move forward.
These funds will be used to help with costs not covered by insurance: the cost of hotels for family members who will be staying with Kelsie in New York, the cost of childcare, any and all costs associated with her care and with childcare when Kelsie returns from surgery in New York, the cost of groceries and gas, of housekeeping, etc., etc.
Y'all, cancer is an expensive beast.
We all, and espeically the Johnson family, appreciate your support.
**If you feel unable to donate monetarily but are interested in supporting the Johnson family as they work to successfully come through this challenging period in their lives, please leave a comment with an email address and someone will contact you. Other great ways to offer support are to purchase a prepared grocery shopping list, donate quality used kids’ clothes, gift certificates, etc.**
Fundraising team: Team Kelsie (1)
Seana Rowell
Organizer
Craftsbury, VT
Kelsie Johnson
Beneficiary
Megan Janzen
Team member
