Welcome to the CaringBridge website for Halcie Wethington. First, why Halcie? Halcie's given name is Halcyon. Her grandfather and great-grandfather's names were both Elbert Halcyon Pfeiffer Jr. and Sr. accordingly. Halcie's dad, Mark, wanted to honor them as they both passed early in his childhood, and the name Halcyon was bestowed upon the first daughter. Halcyon comes from a story in Greek mythology about the halcyon bird, which had the power to calm the rough ocean waves every December so she could nest. Like those calm waters, halcyon the word and Halcyon the beautiful young lady has come to mean a sense of peace or tranquility. And it's precious to see how the peace of the Lord that passes all understanding is resonating so deeply in her as she walks this walk. Halcie is a lover of Jesus FIRST, daughter of Mark & Valerie Pfeiffer, sister to Niles and Ana, wife of John Wethington, mommy to Molly, Ellie and Peter, and friend to all. I am blessed to have her as my gift daughter and we are using CaringBridge for the same reason most anyone does, because the response, prayers, and love that surround Halcie have been so overwhelming and the privilege to keep so many of our peeps informed has become overwhelming too. Here we can send all who ask us to the same place with the same info and it has the added benefit of holding onto the chronological story in one place with all the photos and videos that we can gather. Click on "Ways to Help" to donate to Halcie's Go Fund Me account or sign up for the Meal Train. You can even order food and have it delivered if you don't live near them and want to participate in the meal train. The day we are starting this is January 12th, 2022, the day of Halcie's first and hopefully only brain tumor surgery but that is not where the story began so let us do our best to recreate from our understanding and information from John Wethington, Halcie's husband: December 7th, 2021 we received a call from Halcie and our son-in-law John that she is at the hospital and has been diagnosed with a brain tumor. She had been experiencing some anxious thoughts for months, some annoying but not concerning short-term memory loss and some slight vision impairment. She thought she might need to start trying some readers, but it all culminated in a seizure that day at work and a rush to the hospital. December 8-15, 2021 The following days were filled with more appointments, serious conversations, specific data, second opinions, a move to MD Anderson, in Houston where they live, and ultimately a plan for surgery on Dec. 21, 2021. They hope to remove 60% of a 2.5cm tumor in the left frontal lobe. Somewhere in here is a fun mad-dash to Ellie's dance recital after a loooooong several days in the hospital. I will update that later as it's pretty funny. December 16, 2021 - A beautiful prayer service was held for Halcie at
https://www.newdaychurch.com in Houston, TX You may view the prayer service at:
https://www.facebook.com/newdaychurchhouston/videos/2159034057580115 December 20 - Halcie and John were at the hospital for pre-surgery tests December 20 - 9:53pm, 7 hours before heading to the hospital for surgery, they received a call that Halcie had tested positive for covid and surgery had to be postponed. Agonizing!
December 21-December 31, 2021 - Halcie had no symptoms and 2 of their 3 children didn't test positive but the oldest, Molly and John both tested positive and did have symptoms. So...they waited and quarantined and waited and quarantined until a new date was set for January 12, 2022. December 21-24 - A crew of amazing Secret Santa's were set to rebuild the Wethington backyard deck while she was at surger, and they did...just not in secret anymore now that surgery had been delayed. January 1, 2022 was Christmas day for the Wethington's. Molly and John were feeling better, and the family, plus John's wonderful Mom Susan, who has been staying with them and caring for the children during this trying time, finally celebrated "Christmas Day". January 1, 2022 unfortunately Halcie's vision took a noticeable turn for the worse. After many calls to move up the surgery the original date was kept and the continuation of prayers and another round of preparation for 1/12/22 began. January 10,2022-Halcie and John were again at MD Anderson for pre-surgery tests. They were able to jump into an MRI trial that is gathering data on how MRI's might predict a specific IDH1 mutation that is a GOOD mutation. When found typically the patient experiences a significantly reduced rate of tumor growth. And then finally it was surgery day, January 12 and you can read the journal to see what comes next. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ All of these are the points of facts in a chronological line but the real story is about Halcie and her devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ and her faith in him no matter what comes. A husband that is dedicated and true in her caretaking and his faith as they and their children and the whole family are walking alongside Halcie. Read Halcie's post below ten days after diagnosis. Her faith and peace at this time is astounding! It will encourage you. "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:4-7. This week has been the hardest and sweetest week of my life. I was diagnosed with a brain tumor. But this week I’ve experienced an otherworldly kind of peace that I can’t explain. I’ve never experienced this before. Earlier this week, I will admit, I felt streaks of fear and moments of doubt. But now as I search my soul I can honestly say I feel total peace. A peace that surpasses understanding. I have it. I know that it’s all due to God’s grace- His being near to me. I feel such an intimacy with God in all this. I know He is so close, closer than the air in my lungs. And let me tell you, what I’ve experienced this week with my Jesus is worth it all. If what I’ve experienced is a foretaste of what we have coming to us, friends, we have no need to fear. Trust me. It’s indescribable. Whether I have 6 months or 60 years left, I am so at peace. The best is yet to come. I want to thank you all so much for your prayers. I can’t explain it, but I feel them, almost palpably. It means so much. I feel as if I’ve just been carried through all this, held, surrounded. The prayer night at New Day was a moment I’ll never forget. Thank you to everyone who came and experienced it with us. And lastly, I can honestly say I am thankful. God chose this season for me. He’s sovereign. Every inch of my body, my spirit, my soul is His. It’s all about Him. I want to say thank you all from the depth of my heart. Your calls, texts, messages, meals, laundry, but most of all, your prayers. Literally, my village is an army. I am so beyond thankful for you. God is good. God is near. God is worth it. Jesus Christ at the center of it all. It’s all about Him. Praise God, He is good." Halcie Wethington -12/18/21
