Stand with Shandi's Family After Zion's Passing

This sweet family has been through so much lately and just lost their husband and daddy. Shandi, Zion, and their 3 beautiful children are loved by so many. I would love to help Shandi with expenses that no one can prepare for. Any donations help! I have attached parts of a FB post that Shandi had shared.

“Zion broke his tibia plateau back in November 2023. He had surgery and was basically bedridden for two months. He blacked out a lot during that time and had many ER visits. The week he was finally able to put weight on that leg in January, he blacked out again, only this time he had a heart attack.

Zion's football dreams were looking dire and that was heartbreaking for both of us. We have put in so much time and effort to give him the chance to walk on to a D1 football team and this was a huge detour. I quit my job and in mid-February, we moved to Utah closer to our families. We had a feeling there was more to come.

In March, Zion got a job and things seemed to be back to normal, for a few days. On March 6, he was again rushed to the Emergency room. He was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy having a very low ejection fraction.

After so many ER visits we still didn’t feel like we really had an answer to what is going on. Tests were done, blood drawn and on April 23rd he got a bone marrow biopsy. Zion was loving his new job as a personal trainer and about to start school in a week when he had a second heart attack on April 29.

We got a call that I needed to come with Zion to the hospital to hear about his test results. That was the longest weekend of our lives. It’s odd to have the birds chirping and kids laughing while you and your spouse are imagining all the possibilities of the road ahead. We got the news on May 12th that Zion is diagnosed with leukemia, Chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) Zion was physically unable to work and had unpredictable symptoms.

On May 20th, Zion did his first round of chemo. He suffered nausea and the most intense migraines he’s ever had before and during his treatment.

He has been taking his meds, eating well, sleeping plenty and exercising regularly. He was on his way home from medical appointments and stopped for a 45min gym session. Yesterday, June 24th, a bystander saw him laying on the ground unresponsive. Zion had gone into cardiac arrest. Zion was then placed in a medically induced coma on life support.”

Zion experienced beautifully sacred dreams about his work on the other side of the veil. God has a greater calling for him on the other side. He will be missed greatly by all those that knew him. Zion passed away 6/27/2024 surrounded by those that love him dearly. God is good, and will provide a way for Shandi and kids. Together we can all help to relieve some of the financial stress.