Help for Ray and Jodi

They say you can’t choose family and, technically, I did not choose Raymond Niemi as my brother-in-law. Jodi, my sister-in-law, did. However, had I been given a choice, I would’ve picked him. Jodi introduced Ray to our family about 10 years ago and from the start, we all saw the warmth, kindness, and authenticity that is in Ray’s nature. He immediately connected with our whole family, especially our kids who love their Uncle Ray. Ray’s presence in our family has been a gift not only for what he has given to us but even more, for what a joy it has been to watch the love that he and Jodi have for one another. Jodi and Ray bring out the best in each other and it has been truly inspirational to watch as they have supported each other thus far on this journey. Unfortunately, Jodi and Ray are facing a life-changing diagnosis. In 2019, after bouts of sickness, Ray had his tonsils removed. The biopsy from the tonsils indicated that Ray had stage 4 Chronic Lymphocytic Lymphoma. For the next year, Ray and Jodi fought the cancer battle and with treatment at Dana Farber, the cancer was knocked back into remission. Recently, we learned that his cancer has rebounded in his blood and he is facing a battle again.

For those of you who haven't met Ray, here is a little more info. Besides being a genuine and kind person, he is also a humanitarian. He is a strong advocate for others and fights for people's rights whenever he perceives inequity or injustice. Jodi and Ray are both in the childcare field because they are people who truly care about kids and find joy in working with them. Unfortunately, childcare is not a particularly lucrative field to work in. They have always been fine financially and managed their money accordingly. But cancer is an unavoidable debt chasm that can be difficult to come out of. This round of Ray’s treatment course will be eighteen months at least. Beyond that, long-term CLL is something he will be dealing with for the rest of his life as CLL (chronic lymphatic lymphoma) does not go away. He may have times when he is in remission for many years or he may have frequent flares. We just don’t know. This is especially true since he is an unusual patient, most often people do not get this disease in their 30s, 40s, or even 50s. Typically CLL patients are in their 70s. For the foreseeable future and beyond, Ray will likely face frequently missed work resulting in lost wages, as well as extra expenses related to treatment (transportation, parking, etc), potential unknowns in regards to medical coverage, housing, and out-of-pocket costs. John Lennon said, “ We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone. “ This GoFundme was created for everyone to be able to help Ray, a very special someone.