Featured Fighters
When I was diagnosed with stage four cancer it was a tragedy but words can’t do justice for how generous and loving people were towards our family. Now our hearts break each time we hear about other’s tragedies because we’ve been there and we know the gut wrenching feeling. But as God does, he used that generosity and love to change us. He’s stirred in our hearts and prompted us to feature others in need with the platform he’s given us (that was built through our own suffering journey).
If you are looking for the sick and the hurting to champion, look no further. This page features warriors who are in the fight of their life and are in need in one way or another. Please consider donating to one of these families. We pray that the Lord blesses each of these families mightily with financial support, physical comfort & that his Spirit would be so close to each person represented here they could feel His breath.
Jacob & Chelsea Beisecker
Jacob was shot in the side in a duck hunting accident on Christmas Eve. He was in the trauma ICU for about a month and just transferred to the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, Georgia where he is undergoing physical rehab- learning to walk again due to a spinal cord injury from the pellets. He will be there around 5-6 weeks inpatient. His dad is with him in Atlanta and his wife Chelsea stayed back to take care of their 1 and 2 year old while they anticipate the arrival of their 3rd child in early March 2021. As of right now, Chelsea will deliver without him and will travel down with their 3 children and his parents to stay in Atlanta for the last 4-6 weeks of his outpatient therapy to support Jacob’s mental health.
As you can imagine, medical bills for this family are high- not only for Jacob’s rehab, but with the delivery of their new baby, travel, lodging, everyday needs, and more. If you would like to support this family financially you can send your gift to Chelsea via Venmo (reference their handle and picture in the screenshot below or you can email her directly to ask how to send a physical check at c.zeigler@yahoo.com. You can also follow their story by clicking the ‘learn more’ link.
Kirk Vanstrom
From his daughter (a college friend of ours)
On February 9th, we got the worst news of all: my dad had a grade 4 glioblastoma. Simply put, it is a highly aggressive primary brain tumor (that means it started in the brain and doesn't metastasize to anywhere else but the brain). There was one confirmed mass in his frontal lobe; which explained his ongoing issue with remembering and forming words. He also has a smaller lesion in his thalamus region that will have to be managed via radiation because of its location.
On February 10th; he went in for a craniotomy to resect the larger mass. The neurosurgeon called us after the surgery was complete and said, "It went great; really couldn't have gone any better. I'd consider this a gross total resection."
As of right now; my dad is in recovery. He faces possible weeks (if not months) of speech therapy, physical therapy, and occupational therapy. On top of that, we anticipate he will be starting aggressive chemoradiation at the beginning of March to rid his body of any cancer cells that weren't caught during the resection and address the smaller remaining mass in his thalamus.
My parents do have insurance; but they gave us a hard time about authorizing his trip to Pittsburgh; so we anticipate more issues down the road. Right now, we are just focused on getting my dad the best treatment, and not letting insurance or money determine his level of care. On top of medical bills from his hospital stays, we anticipate having to pay out of pocket for some if not all of his therapy during recovery, chemoradiation, and possible immunotherapy or further specialized treatment.
My dad lost his job at the paper route because of this; and because my mom will need to be his primary caregiver, her job may be up in the air.
We are raising money to:
1. Assist with potential medical bills from the hospital stay up to this point
2. Have money set aside for further treatment as financial needs arise
3. Help my parents keep up with their regular monthly expenses
4. Show them how much they are loved and cared about
If you can't contribute; then please just pray. One prayer alone seems to be worth its weight in gold. We ask that you pray for healing. Pray that the worst is now behind us. Pray that my dad gets a second chance and a fresh start at a new life.
To follow Kirk’s story click the ‘Learn More’ button and to donate to his GoFundMe click the ‘Donate’ button