Support the Mendozas as Edwin battles S4 Cancer

Banff feels like a big family, and when one of us is hurting, we all feel it.

 

Edwin and Donna Mendoza have been members of the Bow Valley since 2010 and 2013 respectively. They immigrated to Banff from the Philippines, met, fell in love and decided to raise their children here. First came Franco, five years old and full of fun. One and a half years ago, the couple was blessed with another boy. Matteo came along, and the family of four was complete.

 

Edwin worked at the Banff Center for eleven years before Covid came along, and like many, he was laid off for the past two years. It’s a story that is familiar to many of us in this little mountain town.

 

Edwin first felt pain “like needles” in his abdomen on February 20, 2022. After numerous tests, he was diagnosed on March 14, 2022, with stage 4 adenocarcinoma of the small bowel with metastasis to his spine.

 

He is currently in Calgary undergoing daily radiation to the lesions in his spine in the hopes he can maintain mobility in the next few months and get back to his family in the mountains while he receives chemotherapy in Tom Baker Foothills Hospital Calgary.

 

As you can imagine, the stress on the young family is overwhelming. Donna has taken a leave from her job as a health care aide at the hospital to provide support to her husband and to support the children.

 

The goal of this fundraising initiative is to help lighten the financial burden on this family and to help bring Edwin’s brother and close cousin to Canada so they can support Donna and the children as they go through these hardships.

 

Please keep Edwin, Donna, Franco and little Matteo in your prayers. If you can donate, it would be greatly appreciated.