Pandemic

The flu has struck. Iva has been sick the last couple of days. She went to the doctor yesterday and today. Looks like it isn't serious, just terribly uncomfortable. Aches, coughs, etc. Chemo is scheduled to start on Monday again.


Now comes the part we have been worried about for weeks. Iva is running out of donated monies. We don't know how her chemo is going to be paid for. We don't know how we will pay for the medicine she will need after the 5 days of chemo is done. Or the countless other medical expenses she incurs just being here. Being Iva is not cheap. It is not easy. She requires medical appliances. She requires medical supplies. PICC line changing kits. Urostomy bags. And on and on. And none of it is cheap.

What we do know is that there are people out there willing to help. We have seen it. But people forget. Causes come and go like fashion. Please don't let Iva's life be a fad. Don't let it be something you were passionate about this summer, but tossed aside in the fall. We have a Facebook group that has over 13,000 members. If every one of those people donated just $20 . . . and then told 5 people who each who donated $20 . . . It isn't too much really. It is a drop in the bucket compared to what Iva has given and has to give every day just to keep living.

I mean, really. So many people in her position would be bitter. They would be angry. They would be in despair. But she isn't. For those of you who have had the privilege of knowing Iva personally, you know that her spirit shines bright. What frustrates us so much is that no matter how many words we write, or how many emails we send, or how many calls we make, we can never communicate how worthy Iva is of your time and money. She is the product we try to sell every day. And our poor feeble attempts fall short time and again. But we can't stop. It's all we know to do.