Dear friends,

We are reaching out to ask for your help in supporting the young Bogärde family. After the tragic passing of husband and father of seven, John Bogärde, 44, on May 3 this year—only two months after his cancer diagnosis—his widow, Anna-Maria, and her seven children are in urgent need of financial support. Most pressingly, the family needs a reliable vehicle.

Anna-Maria is currently expecting baby number seven, which makes their current vehicle too small to fit all eight of them.

The need is especially dire, as the family depends on a car to attend Holy Mass—a great consolation to them, especially in this time of grief. Three of the boys also serve as altar servers. Mass provides not only spiritual strength, but also an opportunity to see friends, which is vital in this difficult time. Anna-Maria feels it is more important than ever to remain active in the local Catholic community. The family also hopes to continue participating in pilgrimages and other Catholic events, further highlighting the need for a reliable vehicle.

We are hoping to raise enough money to buy Anna-Maria a 9-seater. It doesn’t need to be brand new, but it must be in good condition to avoid unexpected breakdowns. As a single mother of soon-to-be seven young children, Anna-Maria will have limited time and resources for repairs and servicing. Ideally, it will be a car that can serve the family for many years to come.

At the time of writing, this type of vehicle typically costs around 400,000–500,000 SEK (approximately $41,000–$51,000 USD). Any funds left over after the purchase will go toward maintenance and repairs. Should we find a reliable vehicle at a lower price, or raise more than expected, the surplus will be used to help the family purchase two additional rooms in their apartment building. With soon eight people living in a three-bedroom apartment, the need for more space is urgent—but to finance this entirely, we would need to raise more than $50,000 USD.

The Bogärde family are pillars of our church community. John having served at Mass and taught catechesis at the local parish for many years before he and Anna-Maria formed their big and loving family where they even then continued being involved in teaching our faith to the children of our community. A family that has inspired us all. We now hope to help them, after all the ways they have helped us.

Any and all gifts are deeply appreciated—as are your prayers for the family and for the repose of John’s soul. We will keep all of our donors in our prayers.

May God bless and keep you and yours!

Ps. We also highly encourage you to use the ''Pray'' button to leave a message of your prayers and support for the family. And please do also share the fundraiser.