Got a little cancer and I'm headed for surgery!

Team fundraiser

Mat Dunstan and Renae Rodriguez are organizing this fundraiser.

Donation protected

Just in case you don't already know me, my name is Mat, and I'm in a little bit of a pickle. A couple of months ago I went into the hospital for some abdominal pain, and it turns out I had a complete blockage in the lower large intestine. Well, that blockage (which we now officially know is colon cancer after some testing, sorry to spoil the ending for you) was causing enough damage to the rest of the colon due to distension that they weren't able to simply cut out the tumor and put me back together. The solution was to head into the first of two surgeries, with that one to fix me up with a temporary ostomy bag so that my large intestine had some time to heal. That's been an interesting journey, and I would not have thought at 40 I would need to wear an ostomy bag, but here we are!

So at this point I have already been through one significant surgery, during which I've cashed in all of my sick time through my employer. I don't qualify for paid medical leave, so as you can imagine, this next round of surgery and recovery will look a lot different, financially speaking.

At the end of November I'll be going in for my next round of surgery, this time to remove the tumor along with a section of my colon, then stitch it back together. We're also hoping that the ostomy bag will be removed as well, so long as the resection goes well. This is when I'll need your help! The funds you donate will be used to help me bridge the gap in my work schedule while I'm recovering. Luckily my medical bills are being handled with insurance, so this will cover a short run of living expenses until I'm back on my feet.

Thanks for reading along this far, and double thanks if you are donating! Any size donation is appreciated more than you know, and one day I hope I can return the favor!

Also, if you'd like to help by supporting my woodworking side hustle, you can shop what I have for sale by visiting my website https://spaltedburl.com Consider it a donation with a little something in return!

The official letter with the big news