Cancer Expenses For Katie Mayberry
Donation protected
Please help this family afford their out of pocket expenses for Mom's cancer treatments.
Katie was diagnosed with stage 1 cancer back in 2011. She went through the typical “cut, poison and burn” treatment plan: double mastectomy, chemotherapy and radiation. In February 2014 she was diagnosed
with stage 4 metastatic cancer. The family refused to give up hope as they band together and powered through the treatments. Katie has refused to give up the fight and her husband has worked diligently to insure that she is able to take advantage of every resource available regardless of it's expense or sacrifice. All the while being the core support figure for his wife and children's emotional stability.
Most recently the doctors have discovered 3 new tumors in the lining of Katie's brain. They have since placed a port in her forehead and began biweekly radiation injections directly to the affected area of her brain lining. The treatment seemed to be working well for the first few weeks, but recently one of the tumors has grown larger. The doctors have significantly increased the strength of the chemo treatments in an attempt to kill or at least shrink the tumors. They will not be able to gauge whether or not these more frequent and more aggressive treatments are working until January. In the mean time, Katie and Sean are doing everything in their power to maintain normalcy and continue to provide a happy and functional life for their 3 amazing children. Sean is working diligently to support his wife and kids both emotionally and financially. As you could imagine, earning the finances necessary to cover thousands of dollars a month in medical expenses while supporting a family of five would be near impossible. Not to mention the mental toll of taking sole responility in attempting such a task. Regardless of the adversity this family is faced with Sean works hard every day doing everything in his power to make ends meet and wear a smile while he leads his family with unwavering optimism.
Not only has this family done an amazing job coping with the challenges that accompany Katie's illness but they have taken advantage of every opportunity to involve themselves in charities to help other families that are battling cancer and advocate for the proper appropriation of funds raised for breast cancer research and awareness. One day last November I noticed a picture of the Mayberrys come across my news feed on social media. This in it's own was not out of the ordinary, as both Katie and Sean proudly display pictures of the beautiful and well mannered family that has grown from their marriage. What grabbed my attention about this picture in particular was not only the fact that the photo did not show the usual smiling faces that we've grown to associate with the Mayberry family. Instead it appeared that the entire family had their game faces on and were ready to embark upon an epic battle. As I took a second glance I seen that this was not a family photo that anyone had posted, but the cover photo for an article that was being published in USA Today. As I read the article I was amazed that this kind and gentle woman had garnered the strength to speak out against companies misleading consumers into thinking that the purchase of their pink products contributes to support breast cancer research, treatment, or patients. She was advocating against the corruption of huge "Non-Profits" whos founders and administrators are living lavishly off funds that are intended to go towards discovering a cure and effective treatments for cancer patients. Her voice was being heard across the nation and all the while she was in the process of holding her family's sanity together on top of literally fighting for her life!!!
"Frustrated breast cancer-stricken mom: Pink is no cure". http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2015/11/23/frustrated-breast-cancer-stricken-mom-pink-no-cure/76289066/
Through all of this I have never seen this family in low spirits.
I met the Mayberrys in the late summer of 2015 when their oldest son came to play for our youth football team. They struck me as a very loving and supportive family that seemed to be living their "Happily Ever After". The entire family immediatley involved themselves with the team at every opportunity. Whether it was a fundraising event, pep rally, parade or just cheering from the stands on game day, they quickly formed relationships with parents and players. This season their youngest son Rylen also joined the team and helped his team when the 7-8 Year Old Division Championship. There is no question that this family has become a valuable part of our Youth Football Program.
But more importantly they have shown us all to remain positive and that no matter what challenges or circumstances you are faced with, the stress and uncertainty can be offset by treasuring the time you have with your loved ones. Asking you to help them meet the financial demands of the unjust challenge their family has been faced with is the very least I can do in return for the priceless example they have set for all of us.
On behalf of our entire community, thank you for your generosity.
Katie was diagnosed with stage 1 cancer back in 2011. She went through the typical “cut, poison and burn” treatment plan: double mastectomy, chemotherapy and radiation. In February 2014 she was diagnosed
with stage 4 metastatic cancer. The family refused to give up hope as they band together and powered through the treatments. Katie has refused to give up the fight and her husband has worked diligently to insure that she is able to take advantage of every resource available regardless of it's expense or sacrifice. All the while being the core support figure for his wife and children's emotional stability.
Most recently the doctors have discovered 3 new tumors in the lining of Katie's brain. They have since placed a port in her forehead and began biweekly radiation injections directly to the affected area of her brain lining. The treatment seemed to be working well for the first few weeks, but recently one of the tumors has grown larger. The doctors have significantly increased the strength of the chemo treatments in an attempt to kill or at least shrink the tumors. They will not be able to gauge whether or not these more frequent and more aggressive treatments are working until January. In the mean time, Katie and Sean are doing everything in their power to maintain normalcy and continue to provide a happy and functional life for their 3 amazing children. Sean is working diligently to support his wife and kids both emotionally and financially. As you could imagine, earning the finances necessary to cover thousands of dollars a month in medical expenses while supporting a family of five would be near impossible. Not to mention the mental toll of taking sole responility in attempting such a task. Regardless of the adversity this family is faced with Sean works hard every day doing everything in his power to make ends meet and wear a smile while he leads his family with unwavering optimism.
Not only has this family done an amazing job coping with the challenges that accompany Katie's illness but they have taken advantage of every opportunity to involve themselves in charities to help other families that are battling cancer and advocate for the proper appropriation of funds raised for breast cancer research and awareness. One day last November I noticed a picture of the Mayberrys come across my news feed on social media. This in it's own was not out of the ordinary, as both Katie and Sean proudly display pictures of the beautiful and well mannered family that has grown from their marriage. What grabbed my attention about this picture in particular was not only the fact that the photo did not show the usual smiling faces that we've grown to associate with the Mayberry family. Instead it appeared that the entire family had their game faces on and were ready to embark upon an epic battle. As I took a second glance I seen that this was not a family photo that anyone had posted, but the cover photo for an article that was being published in USA Today. As I read the article I was amazed that this kind and gentle woman had garnered the strength to speak out against companies misleading consumers into thinking that the purchase of their pink products contributes to support breast cancer research, treatment, or patients. She was advocating against the corruption of huge "Non-Profits" whos founders and administrators are living lavishly off funds that are intended to go towards discovering a cure and effective treatments for cancer patients. Her voice was being heard across the nation and all the while she was in the process of holding her family's sanity together on top of literally fighting for her life!!!
"Frustrated breast cancer-stricken mom: Pink is no cure". http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2015/11/23/frustrated-breast-cancer-stricken-mom-pink-no-cure/76289066/Through all of this I have never seen this family in low spirits.
I met the Mayberrys in the late summer of 2015 when their oldest son came to play for our youth football team. They struck me as a very loving and supportive family that seemed to be living their "Happily Ever After". The entire family immediatley involved themselves with the team at every opportunity. Whether it was a fundraising event, pep rally, parade or just cheering from the stands on game day, they quickly formed relationships with parents and players. This season their youngest son Rylen also joined the team and helped his team when the 7-8 Year Old Division Championship. There is no question that this family has become a valuable part of our Youth Football Program.
But more importantly they have shown us all to remain positive and that no matter what challenges or circumstances you are faced with, the stress and uncertainty can be offset by treasuring the time you have with your loved ones. Asking you to help them meet the financial demands of the unjust challenge their family has been faced with is the very least I can do in return for the priceless example they have set for all of us.
On behalf of our entire community, thank you for your generosity.
Organizer and beneficiary
Joshua Lami
Organizer
Springfield, MO
Sean Mayberry
Beneficiary