Help Jonah Live A Little

Hi, I'm Jonah Hanks, I am 29 and I have Stage 4 Colon Cancer.

I am a car lover, a brother, a son and a friend. If you have the time, please read my story.

And if you're impatient like me, feel free to jump to the bottom.

Last year started as what I thought would be one of the best years of my life. I was blossoming in my new career, living independently and starting to branch out as a professional. I was learning and working with other shops and individuals to round out my basic knowledge of automotive repair and performance. I was living my dream, and working hard to be the best I could be at it.

In April 2023, I began dealing with terrible abdomen pain, fatigue, and IBS symptoms. While I was waiting on appointments address my health concerns, I made many changes to my diet and routine to optimize my health. I stopped drinking alcohol, I was going to bed routinely, working out regularly, etc. I saw diminishing returns on these changes as I grew more and more weak.

Jumping to September 11, 2023, I went into the emergency room with painful urinary retention and what I now know was my body shutting down. The emergency room doctor got me CAT-scanned and MRI-ed. They identified large masses on my colon, and over 40 lesions on my liver. The blood my liver had been processing from my colon, had devastated my liver.

After a week in the hospital, tons of tests, and a chemo port installed, I left the hospital 25+ lbs lighter than when I entered. I began chemo in October and was awaiting surgeries to remove the colon mass and potentially resect or replace my liver. In February 2024, I learned I would not have surgeries as their revovery could potentially be worse for my outlook than without. In March this year, I finished my last of 12 full chemo treatments, and will be moving onto maintenance chemo treatments for the foreseeable future.

While I was out of work, my car was stored and suffered massive paint and body damage from a car port collapse during a wind storm. Shortly after, I had several parts for my engine rebuild damaged while being stored at my apartment and the unit above me flooded. My car is in the process of an engine rebuild and will need additional transmission work to be drivable, let alone the cosmetic damage. Medical bills, increasing rent and having to repair my own car amidst not working has taken a massive toll on me and my savings.

I plan to continue treatment and return to work as I gain more strength back, but I still need help to get back on my feet. I don't want to sit around and wait until I die or just exist, I want to achieve some of my goals and live a little.

I am terminal, but I am extremely young for this to happen, so I have no timeline for my remaining life. I am lucky to still be alive, and hope to make it another 5-10 years, but I can't make any plans that I had for my long life anymore. I lost my hope of having a long marriage, a family, and even a long career. I now have to make the most of the time I have left.

My go fund me is to help reestablish my independence, address my medical expenses, and long-term help me live some of my dreams before I go.