Children of Eric Trombley

After supporting our mom in her successful battle with breast cancer, we thought cancer had hurt our family enough. But last June, our father was diagnosed with aggressive lung cancer, and since then our lives have been completely turned upside down. With a giant inoperable tumor in the center of his chest, my dad and the amazing medical team he has behind him tried endless chemotherapy and radiation. These medications managed to shrink the tumor by almost 50%, but it is so aggressive that it has not only grown back but also grown larger. In the past few months, the disease has become clearly terminal, spreading to his heart, brain, and stomach and sealing off his airways. As if this were not enough, my father has also battled a paralyzing stroke , brain surgery, the collapsing of a lung, congestive heart failure, and much more. Our father is fighting so very hard, but we sadly accept that this fight is coming to an end. As children, we are attempting to balance the demands of having a terminally ill father with the challenges that often accompany these crucial adolescent years. Alixandria, the oldest, just graduated high school and is preparing to begin her studies out-of-state at the University of Louisville. Alyssa, the middle child, continues to progress in Lakeshore High School, following her dreams of being an Air Force pilot. Jonathan recently has faced some setbacks given the difficult challenges he is facing at such a young age, and hopes for a fresh start next year at Kennedy Middle School. Taking on these new obstacles will be unexplainably more difficult without our father and role model there to guide us along the way, and he understands that he is missing out on priceless memories with his children; weddings, graduations, and countless celebrations will be left one chair empty, and that is the saddest part... Our father is constantly worrying about preparing us for the future that he can no longer be a part of. In his last days, we hope to comfort him with the reassurance that his children are prepared for a successful life. Although us children are very devoted to spending as much time at the hospital as we possibly can, our mother has been an amazing contribution throughout this entire process. My parents went through an extremely rough divorce, but she has selflessly given her time, taken extensive leave from work, and spent night after night at his bedside taking care of him. We owe so much to the amazing people who have supported us on this difficult journey, so we would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their continuous prayers and thoughts. As we prepare for the upcoming hardships we know we will face, we ask for generosity, and we say FUCK CANCER.