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Listed below are letters we have received from patients describing their stories. They have given us permission to share them with you. Although many of patients talk about paying the fund back, this is not a requirement of the fund. Our hope is that they find a way to” pay it forward” by helping another woman during treatment. Besides a financial donation this can come in the form of a ride, a meal, childcare or simply encouragement.
4-2008
Thank you so much for your assistance. It is greatly appreciated, and I will do my best to pay it forward by volunteering or otherwise.
Thank you so much!
4-2008
I would like to take the time to let you know how much the Pay It Forward fund for Women’s Cancer has helped me. I was diagnosed in September of 2004 with stage III breast cancer. After my chemo, the bills starting coming in. Before I started radiation, and was still on disability, my job had terminated me along with my health benefits.
My husband and I have been struggling for the last three years just to make ends meet. When I heard about the Pay It Forward fund, I felt a great sense of relief. You see, I had gone back to school to better myself and to also see if I was ready to get back into the world after chemo and radiation. After many, many attempts to acquire a job and dealing with rejection over and over again, the stress takes a toll on you mentally and physically.
Not knowing if we would be able to pay the rent again while I was job hunting, I found out about the Pay It Forward fund just in time. I am happy to say that they gave me and my husband the peace of mind that we needed, and had not had in a very long time. I am also happy to say that I have finally found a job and think that it may be a good fit.
Thank you Pay It Forward, for making our life much easier.
4-2008
Thank you so much for the financial help that Pay It Forward is providing us. I’m grateful to be alive and look forward to participating in next year’s Pay It Forward evening.
Many Thanks
3-2008
Thank you so much for your generosity. The timing of your gift is perfect, as I am able to work less and less, and my husband is currently not getting paid.
Thanks again!
3-2008
I am a 53 year old divorced mother of two grown sons. When I was diagnosed with breast cancer, my initial thoughts were of the emotional and physical challenges ahead. As the weeks passed, I realize there would be financial challenges as well.
Even though I have good health insurance, there was a sudden surge of bills to pay to meet deductibles. I also had another unexpected substantial expense and to cap off all this checkbook stress, I missed a total of 10 weeks of work.
“Pay It Forward” gave me much needed help during a hard time. Not only monetarily, but what an emotional lift it was to feel a community of concerned people reaching out in support. I thank you and hope to join you in the good work of paying it forward.
12 – 2007
Thank you for brining this “Pay It Forward Fund” to my attention yesterday. It has been quite a struggle this past year with my cancer, my husband being laid off, and both my daughters off to college at the same time. Any help you can give us towards our next mortgage payment will be much appreciated to help us get back on track for the New Year!
12 – 2007
I wanted to take the time to thank you for your kindness and generosity. At the time I was undergoing radiation treatment for breast cancer, my husband was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. He passed away three short months later.
There came a time when I wasn’t sure how I was going to afford to continue taking my prescription for the cancer pill my doctor had prescribed. After asking the doctor if I could stop taking the drug because of the expense, something wonderful happened – I received assistance and support from the wonderful people at “Pay It Forward”!
Let me tell you, I have never received anything “free” in all my life, and now I am receiving these wonderful “gifts”!!! This has allowed me to continue my treatment of a very expensive prescription to help fight breast cancer.
This means so much to me to have one less thing to worry about. Thank you so very much! God Bless you and all the wonderful people that have made this possible. I will keep all of you in my prayers.
10 – 2007
We want to extend our sincerest thanks for the gift of $1,000. This money helped us significantly towards our monthly bills. It helped us immensely as we had plenty of medical bills to pay from last year, and also I had lost my job a well. We hope some day we can contribute to this fund.
Thank you again so very much!
7 - 2007
The $1,000 I received from Pay It Forward was a tremendous help and greatly appreciated. It makes everything so much easier not having a house payment for one month!! Dealing with finances during an expensive ordeal adds a lot of pressure. Thank you to Pay It Forward for making it so much easier.
5 – 2007
I am 43 and had double mastectomy emergency surgery, all due to a regular exam. The doctor saved my life. BUT, it’s not just me…I have sole custody of an 11 year old daughter. So, your fund came into our life, and kept a roof over my priceless work of art for God. I have always taught my daughter to give. I have been doing it for years, but it’s hard to ask for help. You made the asking part not so bad for an independent- former business owner. You came to my rescue! One person can make a difference – your foundation did!
4-5-2007
Dearest Friend: I call you friend because you must be the kind of person whose friendship I would cherish because you have given of yourself so generously to help others. I am so grateful for your kindness and rest assured it will be passed on. May the Lord richly bless you tenfold for all you have done.
In thanksgiving
3-12-2007
We received the very generous check from you for $1,000. Throughout the last year, we have both been adjusting to early retirement caused by the return of a cancer diagnosis; this time, it was metastatic breast cancer. This has necessitated both of us leaving our careers and adjusting to disability and retirement incomes.
Your gracious assistance is gratefully appreciated.
3-1-2007
When I first found out I had breast cancer a year ago, I was devastated. Your whole world changes and you look at life with a whole different perspective. Thanks to all the staff at North Memorial and Hubert Humphrey Cancer Center who helped me and my family through this.
Then came the financial burden of medical bills. You think you can keep up but it becomes overwhelming. Then at one of my visits with Dr. Stella, she mentioned Pay It Forward. I contacted Jean and got the paperwork going. My family could not believe such a thing was available. It has helped immensely! You feel guilty for using these funds, but knowing many people are also going through this. Hopefully some day I will be at the other end – giving instead of receiving. Thank you again!
1-9-2007
A simple thank you is not enough for me to express my appreciation and gratitude for your generous gift of Pay It Forward.
It has been almost a year since my diagnosis of breast cancer and the emotional and physical strain at times was unbearable. Every day was a challenge and I will never have peace of mind again. As I was struggling with chemotherapy and radiation and the toll it takes on your body everyday, events of your life are still happening and you have to deal with it as well. Though at times, I must admit that I just took to my bed and put the covers over my head.
I am blessed with a wonderful daughter who has been by my side for this past year. She has been coping with her own family as well as taking me to all my doctor and therapy appointments, along with being my cheerleader.
When I received your check it was a godsend because even though I am receiving disability payments, my annual salary was cut in half and every month is a financial struggle. So when your check arrived, the burden was reduced and I was able to enjoy my Christmas and put my troubles aside.
I go to the doctor this week and await the results of my current test. I pray every night to grant me a few more years to watch my grandchildren grow and to le me give back to all my family, friends and friends I have met along the way. I hope to give the gift of Pay It Forward back in the coming months so I can help someone else and reduce their burdens.
God Bless you all
12-21-2006
Enclosed please find my mortgage payment. This is one of my main concerns, so any help you can give us will be greatly appreciated. My kids are helping the best they can. I will figure out how to pay the foundation back once I get back to work full time and my husband finds some sort of employment.
My pride is taking over here, so I would like to explain a little bit about how this situation came about. In March of this year, we brought my father-in-law home from the nursing home to die. He was expected to die within two weeks to a month. Jim stayed home to take care of his dad with the help of my youngest son, Jess. Ray was a double amputee, tube feeding, diabetic on dialysis.
I worked two jobs so Jim could be here! Needless to say, we got him better. Then in October he decided to quit dialysis. October 13th I found out I had cancer, and on October 14th, Ray passed away in my home.
Jim did work small construction jobs in between this time, whenever it worked out. I am not asking for pity – we made the decision to help him as a family, knowing it would be hard. Now we just need a little assistance until Jim finds something. Most construction companies told him it would be February and March before it opens up again. I cannot thank you enough for doing this for us.
10-19-2006
Thank you for the financial help this fund has given me! I hope that sometime in the future I can help others financially or otherwise! The following is how this fund has helped me.
I had been a healthy person for most of my life. I am a single parent and bread winner for my two daughters and the caregiver for my elderly aunt, who also had cancer. It added a lot of stress that I could not work during most of my cancer treatment. At first, I thought only of my treatment. But as time went on and I became further and further behind in my bills. This just made my recovery more difficult!
The Pay It Forward fund alleviated much of this stress by helping me keep ahead of my utilities. I’ll be forever grateful to the generous souls who donated to this fund, not even knowing who would receive the funds.
I’m still undergoing treatment and thankfully finally able to work four days a week. One day I hope to be a donor myself!! |
