Brett was diagnosed with colon cancer and paritoneal carcinomatosis (which is cancer of the abdominal cavity), a little more than a year ago. Since then, Robin and Brett have been fighting hard to fight this virulent and relentless disease while at the same time keeping their family afloat and raising their young son, Tucker.
Robin recently gave us an update on Brett's status that voices their need better than I ever could:
"He (Brett) had another CT scan and we found out the reason for his back pain is because the growth on his spine is growing into his spinal cord and morphing into his vertebrae at Lumbar 2... The growths in his liver are also growing. The image also showed his stomach isn't digesting (basically) and he has alot of fluid and food and gas that's "stuck" (dr's words) we need things to be moving in order for Brett to have an appetite. In the mean time we are trying to rest and take care of Tucker together. Our house is a mess... Laundry is everywhere (both clean and dirty... Half the time I just want to throw away half of our things so I have less to manage.. and clean.) I managed to give Bo a haircut, a bath and put his bed back together after I washed it... It's only 7:30 and I put my self to bed.
Things are hard.
Our life is in slow motion"...
On top of house keeping and maintenence, Robin has divulged to me they are dealing with $15,000 of credit card debt due to medical bills. The original plan was to only list the need for house keeping, but I didn't want to hamper the generosity of friends and family or what the Good Lord can do when we ask in faith.
My good friend and CEO of PDX Cleaning has agreed to 6 months of house cleaning, 2 times per month for $1,680.00, which is half as much a cleaning service normally charges. All funds in excess of $1,680.00 will directly be given to the Rohde family for the purpose of medical bill payment.
Robin is feeling very overwhelmed right now. Her friends have set up the GoFundMe site and this one to share ways you can help if you'd like to help out in other ways, please contact us and we'll attempt to schedule assistance as her need arrises or as she's able to accomidate your generous assistance.
CaringBridge is a nonprofit social network dedicated to helping family and friends communicate with and support loved ones during a health journey. Learn more about CaringBridge.
