**LEISA CHRISTY-JOHNSTONE** Hi, my name is Jeff and I am setting up this Go Fund Me campaign on behalf of my wonderful sister-in-law Leisa. She is in need - due, in part to our flawed medical insurance system, in part to unfortunate timing and, in part to the terrible effects of ovarian cancer. PLEASE CONSIDER MAKING A DONATION - I will attempt to share some of Leisa's story: I met Leisa when I was dating her older sister Marla and she was nearly 13 years old... the cutest kid, gifted athletically and a bit of a tomboy, who was willing to try anything and stick her nose into any situation. It might be a neighborhood baseball or football game, a bike race or climbing up on a garage roof, it might be throwing a frisbee or water balloons - or maybe fists - if a local bully picked on one of the weaker kids or an animal! Leisa was well-liked by all of her peers for her kind, inclusive manner and her soft heart as well as being respected for her ability to stand up for herself and for what is right. After a year or so, I married her sister and Leisa became my sister-in-law - soon after, she became Aunty Leisa to our first child and then the three others that followed in our family. Over these years, one thing has been consistent, Leisa is loved by everyone she comes in contact with; her parents, siblings and extended family members, her son and all of his friends, all of her co-workers throughout her life, current and past neighbors and the fortunate folks that Leisa has selflessly helped over the years. I could give countless examples and, trust me, the list would be WAY too long - but, I am witness to Leisa ALWAYS following an honest internal philosophy: "Love others and, if you witness a need, do what you can to help"... how can you not love that? As the years went along, Leisa was finding herself in a very favorable place - good things happen to good people, right? After a long and successful career, where she focused on planning, saving and investing for her "golden years", it became time to consider retirement. Doing the math, she felt that she had enough assets to live out comfortable, certainly not lavish, retirement years. Regarding health care and not being of Medicare age, she shopped for an affordable plan that she could self-pay and opted to buy it on a year-to-year contract. December 1st to December 1st. Everything seemed to add up and Leisa retired in December of 2024. Shortly after retirement, Leisa began to suffer from some medical issues and she was developing (then unexplained) blood clots, mostly in her legs. Due to the pain associated with these blood clots, she made multiple clinic visits, where she was warned about the concerns of them moving towards her heart, attempts to treat clots with blood thinning medications and more than a few ER visits when the movement of blood clots was detected. Throughout 2024, Leisa's treatments generated large medical bills and she was told that she should undergo cancer screening, as the blood clots might be a symptom of cancer! In addition, "the affordable plan" passed about $2700 onto her for payment AND, more concerning than the bills, she learned that as of December 1, 2024 (approaching soon), the insurance company would only renew her coverage "excluding existing medical conditions"! So, on December 1st, not yet the enrollment period for a PPACA medical plan, Leisa took the only option that she could find and purchased a supplemental insurance plan to fill the time gap to eligibility for the Obama-Care Plan. That one-month supplement cost her a pretty penny and "covered" her medical costs (to a degree) - but, held her responsible for $9000. Since January 1, 2024, Leisa has been covered by the PPACA - it is a high-deductible plan that results in big out-of-pocket bills - but, provides guaranteed eligibility for renewal - which is critical at this point, because in 2024, Leisa has been through a lot more medical challenges. To prevent the danger that comes with blood clots, she had surgery to place a filter in an artery, near her heart. As she was recovering from that surgery, she developed abdominal pain that couldn't initially be explained. She went through test after test, scan after scan, searching for the source of her pain, along with treating the blood clot concern. Again, cancer was considered a possibility - and, ultimately the doctors found an unidentifiable "mass" in Leisa's abdomen - maybe cancer... the worst was true, she had ovarian cancer - the prescribed treatment - surgery, followed by Chemotherapy. Like the trooper she has always been, Leisa took the news head-on. She has followed the prescribed treatment program and maintained a good attitude through it all. Physically and emotionally, very tough times... financially difficult as well. Her multiple procedures, coupled with the high deductible (but sustainable) insurance have resulted in an additional out-of-pocket amount due of $9000 in 2024. Since Leisa retired in December of 2024, her medical bills (not including premiums paid) have amounted to over $20,000 and, we all pray that the worst is behind her. We are all hopeful that the treatments are a complete success and that, as they say, the doctors got it all and Leisa will be one of those complete success stories - a cancer survivor with a long and happy life ahead of her! Her generous nature has prevailed throughout her treatments and, when she most recently completed her final Chemotherapy session, she rang the bell (final treatment tradition) with a big smile for clinic staff family and friends! As an example, here is an excerpt from a card that she received from a friend: "Congratulations are in order for you - for completing your 6 Chemo sessions. I am proud of the way you handled it. You went into the sessions with a positive attitude, never complaining, always keeping a smile on your face and never acting depressed or saying "Woe is me". I know it was very hard on you, with the pain, discomfort, swollen legs, etc. However, what I am most proud of you is that through all that you were experiencing, you still managed to brighten up everyone else's day and helped your neighbors when they needed it, from grocery shopping to bank runs to bringing D to the hospital. It would have been understandable if you would have said no, always being exhausted all the time, but still finding the time to help others. This is what makes you such a special person... I'm sure that God has a special place set aside for you in heaven." Even in her weakened state - Leisa remained consistent with her honest internal philosophy that I mentioned earlier!! Medical bills can be dealt with and Leisa has, to date, made some progress in paying almost $5000 towards her total of $20700. Contributions received from this Go Fund Me campaign with go to pay down this balance further and, if there is enough of a response, her future medical expenses - because, there are certainly more bills pending as well as new ones to be incurred through the process of follow-up visits and future testing. With some of the financial burdens lifted, the stress that comes with it can be eliminated and Leisa can focus on the most important task at hand and complete her follow-up care and get healthy!! Because the bills won't stop anytime soon and each one adds to the total, I set the contribution goal at $20,000. Please contribute to this fundraiser. There can't be a more worthy candidate... If you cannot contribute, I would ask - all of Leisa's many loved ones and her whole family would ask - that you send a prayer of healing grace, along with a prayer of thanks, for such a warm and loving soul - a REAL GIVER Leisa.
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