 Leukemia & Lymphoma Society ||||| Shands Children's Hospital |||||| Make A Donation ||||| Courage PRINT A 8x11 POSTER FOR YOUR OFFICE OR SCHOOL (Word Doc) |
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A note from Mark Holmes: Dear Reader, Won't you help my nephew Andrew? My brother and his wife have struggled mightily to provide a good home for their children and they work very hard. Dave is a trucker who works very long hours and Donna has her hands full with four children and once again faces frequent, expensive trips to Gainesville for Andrew's chemotherapy and other related visits. They simply cannot keep up with all the demands, financially and otherwise. This relapse of Leukemia presents a mountain to overcome. Sometimes it takes a caring community to overcome such a challenge. To have a good chance of avoiding the germs and viruses that could threaten his life even more, Andrew must have a very clean and somewhat isolated area of his own - something that is impossible without the help of the community. Dave and Donna need the money and a good contractor who will hopefully work at cost in order to upgrade and expand their home. A clean and safe environment could well make the ultimate difference in Andrew's future. You have our assurance that all money and consideration received will be used exclusively for Andrew's ongoing care and housing. As before, it will take years to fight this disease and years of follow up care. Contact information for the hospital and Bank of America are shown below. - Thank you. |
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Mark Holmes David Holmes Nine Year Old Lake City Boy Falls Victim
to Leukemia for Lake City, Florida (July 18, 2007) - Andrew Holmes should be preparing for another football season, pursuing a hobby or otherwise enjoying his summer. But this nine year old Lake City boy is fighting for his life - again. Stricken with a relapse of Leukemia, Andrew once more faces years of treatment, follow up care and expenses. A bone marrow transplant has been ruled out with no suitable match within the immediate family so aggressive chemotherapy is imminent. According to David Holmes, Andrew's father, the relapse took the whole family by surprise. "After three years of good health, we were hoping that Andrew was going to reach the five year mark following his initial treatments, and be considered cured", said the anxious father. He added, "A few weeks ago, Andrew suddenly became weak and listless again and we were told that the Leukemia had returned." Andrew is being treated by Dr. Stephen Hunger, Chief of the Pediatric Hematology and Oncology Division at Shands Children's Hospital at the University of Florida in Gainesville. The ideal procedure would have been a bone marrow transplant from a matching donor within the immediate family but a close match is not available. Aggressive chemotherapy will now occur and the course of treatment will involve an extended period of recovery at home. And that's where another potentially life threatening problem is encountered. Andrew will be highly susceptible to illness
due to a weakened immune system due to the David Holmes is an Army veteran and a hard working trucker, often on the road six days a week for long hours. Andrew's mother Donna has her hands full with four children and now endures frequent hour-long trips to Shands and back with a sick child. Under these burdens, even basic upkeep and repair of the home falls by the wayside. Simply put, the family needs help in making the home safe for Andrew and to pay for substantial related expenses. Bank of America worked with the family to open a donations account and will be able to accept a donation at any Bank of America office by asking for the Andrew Holmes Recovery Fund. "We're asking the people of Lake City and North Florida to respond to this little boy and his family", said Andrew's uncle, Mark Holmes of Cooper City, FL. He added, "My sister Janis (Janis Ruxton of Bonita Springs) and I are providing initial funding and we invite anyone willing to lend a hand to make a donation of any size. The Holmes family hopes to raise enough money to build an addition to the existing home so that Andrew has a new, clean space of his own to aid in his long recovery period. They are also hoping that a local contractor will step forward to offer construction services at cost. To
help Andrew and his family, please make a deposit into the Andrew
Holmes Recovery Fund at any Bank of America office (ask the teller
to look up the fund on the internal mail board) or send a check
payable to:
About the Holmes Family:  Residents of Lake City for nearly two decades, Dave and Donna Holmes have three other children - Bradley, Tommy and Pamela. Andrew Holmes first battled Leukemia at age three and after several years of treatment, enjoyed three healthy years, taking up football and otherwise having a normal childhood. Dave is a U.S. Army veteran, having served in Germany in a secure communications station at the front lines of the Cold War. He works for Youmans Transport of Savannah, GA., agents for Evans Delivery Service of Pottsville, PA. The family has lived in Florida since his discharge from the Army. |
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Content © 2007 Andrew Holmes Recovery Fund |
treatment. In the
modest Holmes household in Lake City, he shares a bedroom with
his two brothers and that arrangement could prove deadly. In
close proximity to his brothers and in a house that needs more
than a bit of tender loving care due to the father's heavy work
schedule as a trucker, Andrew may be unavoidably exposed to a
potentially toxic stew of common contagious germs, viruses or
contaminants. The family simply does not have the means to provide
a medically suitable living space for Andrew. In hopes that the community will step forward to help
Andrew, a special account has been established at Bank of America.