By JUDD WEIL
Hutch Post
A Hutchinson woman is raising money for her boyfriend who recently underwent brain surgery at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in Omaha, Neb., to remove a tumor on Nov. 7.
To offset the costs of her boyfriend’s medical expenses the woman, Cassie Withington, is making and selling cancer ribbons of any color, as well as puzzle pieces for Autism.
Withington said the tumor was discovered in the last full week of October after her boyfriend, Jesus Reyes, had suffered a pair of seizures.
“There were no strange behaviors, nothing out of the ordinary, every once in a while, he’d fall down,” Withington said. “But it really started to be concerning when he was driving to work one morning, and he had a seizure behind the wheel.”
Doctors found a low-to-medium grade tumor in Reyes. They will know more, including if the tumor is cancerous, following removal and subsequent study by pathology.
“Scared. Stressed. We were just in awe,” Withington said, when describing how she and Reyes felt upon finding out his condition.
Reyes had been seeing a local Hutchinson provider for bad migraines.
According to Withington, the provider told Reyes to medicate with Tylenol and claimed it was just his sinuses from working around dust and dirt.
"That’s what he was doing, and then it just got progressively worse,” said Withington.
Worse culminated when Reyes was working in Nebraska for Hutchinson-based Longfellow Foundations. While driving to a job site, Reyes had his first seizure behind the wheel of his vehicle. He then had another episode at the job site.
He was transported to a hospital in Bellevue, Neb., where staff found the tumor.
From there, Reyes was transferred to UNMC, where doctors ran more tests, including MRIs.
“They sent him home for two weeks so we could get stuff figured out with our boys,” Withington said. “When they found the tumor, the doctor said he could not work any more until this was taken care of.”
On Nov. 2, Withington and Reyes went back to Omaha, where they have resided for the last two weeks.
Reyes went in for a craniotomy on Nov. 7, with the intention of removing 80% to 90% of the tumor, subject to location in the brain.
Withington has spent $1,854 for gas, hotel fees, food, and a babysitter for their sons.
Their first hospital bill has not been posted, but is well over $5,000.
Following the operation, Reyes will be out of work for four-to-six weeks and will be severely limited in activity.
Post-initial surgery procedures for Reyes could be anything from radiation therapy or chemo therapy, depending on what pathology determines.
Withington said she decided on her method of raising money, using her Cricut machine to make cancer ribbons and puzzle pieces for Autism, following a conversation with Reyes’ aunt.
“He got me the Cricut for my birthday,” she said.
So far, Withington has only sold two of her products. She is charging between $10 and $15 for a cancer ribbon of any color or a puzzle piece for Autism awareness.
Withington and Reyes are also interested in trying a cooking fundraiser, based off Reyes’ love for cooking, to raise money for expenses incurred during this tough time in their lives.
Longfellow Foundations has rallied to Reyes and Withington’s aid.
“Jason Holt, the vice president, we went in and talked to him before we went to Nebraska and that company is amazing,” Withington said. “Because I had mentioned his health insurance and he said, ‘don’t worry about his Blue Cross and Blue Shield, we will pay his premium.’ We just have to pay his out-of-pocket.”
Those wanting to help Jesus Reyes can reach Cassie Withington on Facebook.
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