Funds for Phillip Fobb's Future

My name is Victoria Blevins and I have set up this GoFundMe account for Phillip Fobbs. I was fortunate enough to have met Phillip, his 13 year old sister Ariana and Mother (Tawana Goldring) a year ago this week. They moved down here from Maryland to start a new life. Tawana researched our area and decided to settle in Lithia. She was in search of good schools, neighborhoods, etc. She wanted to give her two teenaged children a fresh start in a community that they could flourish in. The three of them made the move, not knowing anyone here, so they could have a chance at a better life. Shortly after the move,  they came into my dance studio in search of classes for Phillip.

He proved to be an amazing dancer. Instantly, our entire studio and dance family was blown away not only by his talent, but also his kind heart and sweet disposition. I offered him a position on our dance competition team and he proved to be a wonderful addition. Dance Team positions were not available at his old studio, so he anticipated our competition season beginning late winter thru spring. He spent countless hours practicing in preparation for the season.

They vacationed in his hometown over the Christmas Break. While away, Tawana felt very ill and ended up in urgent care and a hospital during the trip. It was blown off as a virus and they returned home just after the New Year. Once they returned to Florida she continued to feel very ill. A trip to the hospital would later reveal that she had cancer. More shockingly, Stage 4 liver and colon cancer.

Phillip helped and became the man of the house. He saw to it that Tawana made it to her chemo and cancer treatment appointments and remained by her side the entire time. He continued working and attending all his dance classes and rehearsals. Just as he was set to beginning performances at our first competition of the season, he became very ill. It began as a flu and he just couldn't recover. He went in to the doctor several times and it remained the same diagnosis. He struggled to make it to classes and did not have the endurance he had in the previous months. He had lost significant weight and just didn't look or seem himself. Finally, Tawana insisted he have a full physical. The following day his mother received a call from the doctors office telling her to take him immediately to the hospital. He was in need of an immediate blood transfusion. Furthermore, they needed to run many additional tests to determine what exactly was wrong with an otherwise healthy 19 year old.

The following day, I received the most shocking information from Tawana. He was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma cancer. Everyone was in shock, in less then two months both Phillip and his mother were diagnosed with two completely different forms of cancer. Tawana and Phillip began undergoing treatments together which continued for about 6 months. Tawana stayed exceptionally optimistic though her diagnosis was considered terminal. Phillip's prognosis was good as he was told that with treatment he could and would make a full recovery. Amazingly enough he has done just that. He was even able to attend our dance intensive workshop at the beginning of August dancing 4 hours a day for an entire week. We were all excited and anticipating the start of the season next week. His blood levels had returned to normal and his health had made a tremendous turn for the best. He would finally get to start back into classes with his fellow dancers and complete the season with his team.

Unfortunately, that will not be the case. Tawana was admitted into hospice care after she began to decline very quickly leading into last weekend. As of today, Tawana was unresponsive and Phillip was made aware that she would have a few days to hours of life. As Tawana remains in this final stage of life, Phillip must make preparations for her funeral. Tawana's funeral will be back in Maryland and in turn her body will need to be transported back. Burial expenses have not been arranged as she deteriorated so quickly. The entire funeral expense now rests on Phillip and his immediate family. Though Phillip is old enough to remain here, he will return home to help raise Ariana. He is admirable in so many ways and insists to remain by her side. He called and my mother, daughter and I quickly drove to the hospice care center. We were invited into her room during a beautiful prayer service. I was quickly able to see what a spiritual family they were and following the prayer I was able to sit down with Phillip to discuss his future plans. It breaks my heart to see how badly hurt he is. His mother was his rock. They battled their treatment together and now he must continue without her. 

All of the expense of relocation is now on Phillip and his families shoulders. All of their belongings are here and need to be moved back with them. Phillip's health will require follow-up appointments, check-ups, etc. This will require medical bills, co-pays, etc. Phillip has hopes of returning to college and working toward building his future. Ariana would like to return to dancing and other extra-curricular activities in the return to their hometown. They will need to eventually settle in and begin this new phase of life without their beautiful mom. I hope you will all consider this family in your thoughts and prayers.  Never once throughout this entire event did Tawana or Phillip ask for any help. She continued to stay current with her bills, even up until last week. This had to be difficult as she and Phillip remained unemployed during their treatments over the last year. Please know that every donation will help them begin to provide closure and a new start.  Any amount will help them, no amount is too small. Thank you for taking the time to read and please share this with others to help us spread this message.