Our mom, Judy, is facing a fight none of us expected.
For many people, she is Judy. She is a daughter, Ronnie's wife, a mother of four, and grandmother to 19 grandchildren. She's a sister, a friend, and someone deeply loved by a very large family.
And for countless other families over the past 37 years, she is the woman behind Promise Kennels and Promise Plus Kennels—the person who once placed a tiny puppy into their arms and, in many cases, became a lifelong friend in the process.
To us, she's Mom.
In August, our lives changed very quickly.
Mom became seriously ill from recurrent internal bleeding. Her blood count fell dangerously low, leading to repeated hospitalizations, multiple blood transfusions, endoscopies, and procedures to find and control the bleeding.
Then, while doctors were trying to determine what was happening, they discovered something none of us were prepared for: a large mass involving her pancreas and surrounding areas that doctors believe is cancer.
Suddenly, our family went from worrying about getting Mom through a gastrointestinal bleed to hearing words like oncology, biopsy, cancer, and chemotherapy.
The biopsy has confirmed what our family had been praying we would not hear. Mom has poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma compatible with pancreatic origin—pancreatic cancer.
Her earlier imaging showed a large tumor in the tail of her pancreas that had invaded surrounding tissues and structures, along with additional findings highly concerning for metastatic disease. At the time we first shared this, we were still waiting for her doctors to determine the full extent of the cancer.
We now have that answer. Mom's doctors at Texas Oncology have confirmed that she has Stage IV pancreatic cancer. The cancer has spread, surgery is not an option, and her doctors have told us that treatment is not expected to cure it. The goal of treatment now is to control the cancer, slow its progression, and give Mom as much good time as possible.
This was the news our family desperately hoped we would not receive. But Mom is not giving up, and neither are we. She is moving forward with treatment, and we are still waiting on molecular and genetic testing that may reveal additional treatment options. We will keep fighting, keep asking questions, keep praying, and keep leaving room for a miracle.
This Isn't Mom's First Fight
Many of you who have known Mom over the years already know that she has spent years living with and fighting Multiple Sclerosis. Some of you have known her through the difficult seasons that came with it, and you've also watched her fight her way back—sometimes getting the upper hand and refusing to let MS define her life or take away the things she loved.
Through all of those years, she kept going and kept doing what she loved. When she asked anything of her friends, family, or Promise Family, it was always just to keep her in their prayers.
That's part of what makes writing this so difficult for us.
Mom is facing something different. She's already been through repeated hospitalizations, severe blood loss and transfusions, and now she is preparing for a fight against cancer while still living with the challenges MS has already placed in front of her.
So this time, we're asking for her—because she still won't ask for herself.
Why We're Asking for Help
We've created this GiveSendGo with an initial goal of $25,000 to help Mom through the months ahead.
The money raised will help with medical bills and out-of-pocket expenses, medications, travel to oncology appointments and treatments, and the many other expenses that begin accumulating when serious illness suddenly becomes part of everyday life.
We don't yet know exactly how long this road will be or everything it will require. As her treatment progresses, we'll keep this page updated so everyone who chooses to walk alongside Mom knows how she's doing.
If you're able to help financially, thank you. Whether it's a one-time donation or continuing support during her treatment, every contribution helps.
But we want to make something very clear:
Helping Mom does not have to mean giving money.
We need your prayers. We need encouragement. We need people reminding her on the difficult days that there is an enormous community standing behind her.
37 Years of the Promise Family
One of the hardest decisions Mom has already made is that, after 37 years of breeding and raising dogs, the litter she has now will be her final Promise litter.
She knows the time has come to put her strength and energy into her health and the fight ahead.
But those 37 years created something much bigger than a kennel.
There are Promise families scattered all over the country. Some came to Mom for one puppy and stayed in touch for years. Some came back for a second or third. Some became close friends. Mom has watched children grow up alongside dogs she raised and has received countless pictures, Christmas cards, updates, stories, and messages over the years.
Those puppies became someone's best friend, someone's protector, someone's companion through difficult times, and simply another member of someone's family.
Now we're hoping we can bring some of that enormous Promise Family back together for her.
Show Mom Her Babies ❤️
If you have—or have ever had—one of Mom's Promise babies, please show her.
Post the pictures. Send the stories. Show her the rambunctious youngsters and the sugar-faced older babies who once left her home as tiny puppies.
And please don't leave out the babies who have crossed the Rainbow Bridge.
Post their pictures, too. Tell Mom about the years you had together. Share your favorite memory. Tell her what that dog meant to you and your family.
Post as often as you want.
We would love for Mom to be able to open Facebook during the difficult days ahead and see 37 years' worth of lives she touched looking back at her.
For 37 years, Mom has sent little pieces of her heart home with families through the dogs she raised.
Now we're asking that community to send some of that love back to her.
Donate if you can. Share this fundraiser. Send Mom a message. Fill her Facebook page with Promise babies and memories. And, most importantly, please pray for her.
Faith Through the Fight
Mom's faith is an important part of who she is, and it will be an important part of how she faces what comes next.
We're praying for healing. We're praying for strength and comfort. We're praying for wisdom for her doctors and nurses. And we're praying for the strength our entire family will need to walk beside her through this.
Mom has chosen a passage that means a great deal to her during this time:
- “But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.” — Philippians 3:20–21 NLT
The passage reminds us that our hope extends beyond what happens to these earthly bodies and rests ultimately in Christ and His promise to make us new.
Whatever this road brings, Mom will not walk it alone.
Thank you for loving her. Thank you for praying for her. Thank you for being part of her life and for helping us surround her with faith, family, and hope.
With love,
Christopher, Shawnicy, & Heather
Judy's children
