Support for The Steven & Kristina Cortes Family

Steven B. Cortes is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of his son Steven West Cortes's family.

Steven W.'s wife Kristina, only 36 years old, was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer in November of last year. Her case is described as widespread and highly aggressive. They are the parents of two beautiful twin 4-year-old girls, Sophia and Olivia. This news is devastating in so many ways for Steven, Kristina, and their young family, but we all remain hopeful. Even the chance of our family losing our daughter-in-law and the mother of our twin granddaughters at such a young age is unbearable. As grandparents, my wife and I are lucky to be very close to Sophia and Olivia as we try to keep their life as normal as possible for now.

Kristina is an eternally positive person with a natural ability to look past negativity and accentuate the positive, and we love her. Since her diagnosis, Kristina has been in and out of the hospital, unable to eat. She had surgery to remove some affected tissues and organs, including an expanded hysterectomy. She had surgery this week to remove an intestinal blockage, which has not provided relief. All the while, these issues are delaying the start of chemotherapy treatment.

Kristina and Steven are on FML as he travels almost daily to Emory Hospital from Macon. In the normal world, it is hard for a young family to get ahead. Even with insurance, cancer care is incredibly expensive. These medical costs, plus rent, daycare, utilities, and travel expenses to care for Kristina, will quickly deplete rainy day funds.

We greatly appreciate any funds that you can contribute. All funds will be deposited into Steven and Kristina's account to pay for their expenses and their daughters' care.

Please share this link on your Facebook feed and other social media accounts. We will need community support to meet the goal of this fundraiser and the needs of this young family with twins.