Dear Friends,
Ted and Andi Schiele, need our help. They are going through a very difficult time on many levels, although you wouldn't know that from the smiles on their faces. Having battled Stage 4 colon cancer valiantly since his diagnosis in May 2009, Ted has recently learned that the disease has taken a more aggressive turn. Ted's terminal diagnosis has put them in a position that they never imagined, and although the financial and other stresses are becoming overwhelming, they have not given up. They are an inspiration to many of us.
Ted has been without work this past year, and because he has been focused on getting better and going through treatments at MD Anderson in Houston; he has been unable to secure employment. Meanwhile, Andi has maintained a full-time job with medical benefits; however, we all know that benefits alone do not cover the entire cost of battling a disease. It has not been easy and they have made many personal sacrifices to stay afloat. Unfortunately, the cancer has not only affected Ted's health, but has burdened his family with many unforeseen expenses--most of which Andi's sole income does not even begin to cover.
Our reason for reaching out to you is to see if you can help. The Schiele family did not ask us to do this, but as friends who love them very much, we felt compelled to do something to help them through this difficult period. It goes without saying, that they would do the same for any one of us. We understand that the economy has created difficulties for everyone, but any donation would be a huge blessing and relief for them, and I have no doubt that the blessing would come back your way multifold.
This money will be put to good use and help them with some immediate needs. Currently, they are plagued with medical bills, their cars are in serious need of repairs, they are struggling to buy the most basic of household supplies, and they have been unable to make their mortgage payments. On top of all that, now they are facing a foreclosure within 45 days and may have to relocate. If they are forced to leave their home, they do not currently have the means to resettle into a rental home.
These are tough times for the Schiele Family - without a doubt - but imagine yourself (or your family) in this position. It's hard to bear the thought. This is one of those times in your life when you have an opportunity to really make a difference. Our friends need us now more than ever.
If you are able to donate money to this very worthy cause; you can do so by simply clicking on the DONATION button on this page. Their family member's have come together and are offering matching fund. So for every dollar you donate, it means $2.00 to the Schiele family. No amount is too small.
We hope to raise a minimum of $20,000 for them. Although this amount would not completely resolve their financial obligations, it would surely make a huge effect and offer them some relief.
We hope that you can help us, help them. Any amount would be appreciated and will be kept anonymous. The Schiele Family will receive a card with a list of the names of all who donated and a total amount for the group only (no individual donations will be posted). If you wish to keep your donation completely anonymous, we can omit your name from the list we give to them with the card. Please also visit the Schiele Family Fan Club page on Facebook that we have established for this purpose, and become a Schiele Family Fan. If you have friends or family that you believe could help, please direct them to the Schiele Family Fan Club Facebook page or the www.SchieleFamily.com website.
God Bless
On October 30, 2011, many of us gathered to celebrate Ted’s life. It was so inspirational and full of love for Ted. I think everyone feels that they know Ted better after listening to our pastors, friends’ eulogies and looking at the slide show. I’m so happy that everything went as well as it did. I know that Ted is happy about how everything went as well because someone (or several people) had their name written in the book of life and that was Ted’s hope and prayer for all of his family and friends.
I know that there are many…
Read more...Our beloved Ted entered into eternal life with our Christ Jesus on October 25, 2011 at 7:51PM CT. His passing was exactly as he wished it to be and we are so blessed in that regard! Ted has conquered this life, he has conquered colon cancer, and he has conquered death.
Romans 8:37-39 “…in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is Christ…
Read more...Here we are in October now! The days and months have gone so quickly that I often wish I could slow them down so that I can feel like I’ve used them to their fullest. The thing is, I would not change them. I have been spending every day with Ted, the girls, and friends and family that stop by. I know I’ve said it many times, but I am so grateful for the time I’m able to spend with Ted. I asked Ted if he would rather die suddenly or have a prolonged illness, such that he has had. His…
Read more...Isn’t it strange that whenever anything “bad” is going on, we always try to figure out what the worst case scenario is? I think it’s because if we can handle the “worst,” then anything that’s not as bad as that is do-able! I’ve decided that I don’t want the worst case anymore. When I talk to doctors or nurses or whomever, I’m going to say, “Okay, give me the best case scenario and lets shoot for that!”
This week the worst case scenario occurred. Not with Ted – thank you, Jesus! One of Katie’s horses, Hapache, has been sick for…
Read more...I have been wanting to blog for several days. I feel like there is so much going on in my mind and heart that it’s been difficult to organize my thoughts to put them in writing. So, if I appear to be rambling, I am!
Lets see, since the last blog, things have been going fairly well for the Schiele’s! Ted’s status changes daily – good, bad, okay, good… One thing never changes with Ted and that’s his attitude. He frequently tells me how at peace he is and that he’s never been happier. This may be hard to believe but, if…
Read more...Romans 12:12 NKJV
Can it have possibly been 20 days since my last post? Summers always seem to pass quickly but when time becomes precious, it goes into warp speed. I know, time should always be precious regardless of our situations, but when you realize that time is limited by a few days, a few weeks, or a few months, priorities clarify themselves. Ted and I are enjoying our time together and our time with our kids. Our household contains more laughter than tears; more hugs, hand-holding, saying what you want to say, new rules, honesty, closeness, and the list goes…
Read more...Those of you who are following this blog are probably wondering what happened Monday at the doctor’s appt. It has been such a whirlwind since then, it feels like two weeks have passed!
We went to see Dr. George on Monday and he recommended that Ted go over to the hospital and get fluids and pain control. He phoned Dr. Marquez (Ted’s surgeon) to let her know what was going on with Ted and she said that she would come see him at the hospital.
So, we went over to Seton Williamson and had Ted admitted. When we got up to…
Read more...I know there has been a long break in blogging. Many things have been happening. I kept thinking, “Okay, after we get the results back from these tests, I will update the blog.” And then the doctors would request more tests based on the results of those tests and I would decide to wait for the results from that. But, it went on and on and there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight so let me catch you up!
In the beginning of May, Ted went in for his routine oncology visit and had lab work. The results…
Read more...What a surprise we received when we were contacted by the Williamson County Sheriff’s Posse telling us that we have been named their 2011 Georgetown Rodeo Beneficiary! A lot of people don’t realize the work that the Sheriff’s Posse does for Williamson County and beyond. If you are interested in supporting an awesome (local!) organization, check out their website at www.georgetownrodeo.com. And, if you are looking for some great family fun, come to the rodeo this weekend! We will be there Saturday night. It starts at 8PM. I’m looking forward to seeing the Steer Saddling teams!!! 
I borrowed the title of this post from my devotional for today. I am always amazed how every day my devotional speaks to what I need to hear! When I read the title “Simplify”, I thought that it was going to be about simplifying our lives, i.e. material things. But, it was about Matthew 6:25-34, which I suppose is partially about material things. What I got out of it, though, was “Do not worry!” You would probably not be surprised that I have to remind myself of that many times a day. My favorite part of that verse is 6:33 &…
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Last Tuesday was the benefit at Dahlia’s for our family. I have had such a difficult time putting into words how the benefit went because I was so blown away with the turnout and all the love and community that was felt that night. Would it be safe to say there were 500 or more people there?
I was somewhat aware of the planning and work involved in putting it together but I had no idea the extent the community of Liberty Hill, our friends and family would go to in support of our family. What’s even more amazing is…
Read more...Hi Everyone! Have I told you how much you bless us? Well, the fact that you’re reading this is so incredible to us and just another example of what wonderful family and friends we have. I’ve read a lot about care-giving in the past couple of years and they say that when you are caring for another and ministering to their needs, your bond is strengthened. That has been especially true with Ted and me. It is also true with all of you. We can feel the care and love you are all showing to us and we hope that…
Read more...It’s hard to believe how fast April has gone! Of course, it’s been kind of eventful, so that helps it move along! I hope everyone has wonderful Easter plans for the weekend. We have family in from up north (Keller) and will eat, dye eggs, go to church, and just hang out. My sister, Carissa, went home yesterday and we miss her! It was so nice to have her here.
On Thursday, Ted had his appointment with Dr. George for lab work and an exam. The exam went very well and we are still waiting for the lab results. I think…
Read more...Happy Palm Sunday everyone! We had an incredible service this morning at Fellowship!
Last week went by so fast! My parents went home and my sister, Carissa, came in last night. She will be here all week and I am very grateful because it’s nice to have someone to be around with Ted and help with getting the girls back and forth to school. Of course, we enjoy her company immensely! She went to church with us this morning and then we took her to Cracker Barrel for lunch. We went to the outlet mall to get a few souvenirs…
Read more...Things are going very well! Ted is feeling much better and only requiring pain meds in the evening. He is feeling a little worse for wear today after a very full day yesterday.
Ted’s first follow-up appointment is going to be on April 21 with Dr. George for lab work and exam. It will be interesting to see what things are looking like at that point. He has been receiving phone calls from NY to check on how he’s doing. And he’s been keeping up with taking his vital signs three times a day and they all look good.
My parents are leaving…
Read more...Sorry, missed day seven! It was a whirlwind! I let Ted sleep as late as possible on Sunday thinking that it would be helpful for him to be as rested as possible for the flight home. He woke in a lot of pain and we were a little panicked thinking that he may not be able to fly. As he moved around more, he felt a little better, we heavily medicated him, we had a great ride to the airport, and we made it on the plane and home! Yes! Thank you Brian, Lisa and Kylie for picking us up at…
Read more...It is our next to last day in New York and we can’t wait to be back in Texas! My parents have been taking care of the girls, house, dog, horses, etc. and we are so appreciative!
Ted is feeling okay today. He’s a little sore from the surgery – not the incisions, but from the moving of instruments inside his abdomen. Pain meds are a good thing! We stayed at the hotel for most of the day - relaxing and watching movies. Dr. Smith visited Ted at our room and was very pleased with how Ted is doing. We…
Read more...I apologize for the delay in getting information to everyone regarding how the surgery went today! We had to be at the hospital at 10:00 AM to prep for an 11:30 AM surgery. We arrived on time and… Ted went in to surgery at 2:30 PM! We were able to wait together in a private area but we would have given anything to lay down and sleep! The surgery went completely as planned and I was able to join Ted in recovery by 4:30 PM. We stayed in recovery until 9:30 PM because they wanted to make certain that everything was fine before releasing him…
Read more...Today we had an early start with an appointment at the Rogosin Institute at 9 AM for pre-surgery screening. Everything went well and we have everything arranged for tomorrow. Ted’s surgery is at 11:30 AM and will take about an hour and a half. We have to be there at 10:00 AM for Ted to get ready for surgery. Once he comes out of recovery he will be moved to our hotel which is right across the street from the hospital.
We took a cab ride over to Central Park to explore a bit. It is so beautiful and, amazingly,…
Read more...Today we didn’t have any appointments until late in the afternoon so we went down to Herald Square to meet Rachel and the boys for lunch. We went to the biggest Macy’s I’ve ever seen! Trying to get around in there was worse than any Christmas season, Black Friday and tax free weekend in Texas combined! I think you could buy anything you could ever want there, though. It was amazing! We saw the Empire State building – pretty cool to see famous landmarks in person.
We met with Dr. Fahey, the surgeon, at New York Presbyterian Hospital. The facility…
Read more...I think we have completed the busiest day we will have while we’re here! We met with the doctors at the Rogosin Institute at 9 AM, an x-ray at 10 AM, a PET scan/CT scan at 11 AM, lab work and physical at 2 PM and then a meeting with the head of the trial at 6 PM. Note that these were all over the place so we got to see a lot of the area around the upper east side on foot. New York pedestrians are fearless! There is so much to look at – it’s awesome!
We are…
Read more...We have arrived in New York after an incredible send off by our neighbors! When we were picked up to go to the airport by Lisa, we noticed all of our neighbors had their trash cans out on the street with signs and yellow ribbons on them. We are so blessed by our Sundance Ranch family – they are such a big part of our support group! I will post all of the photos on the Schiele Family Fan Club facebook page but I would just like to show a few here as well.
…
Read more...We have received Ted’s treatment schedule for the clinical trial in New York! They moved the surgery back a week so now we are going on April 4th through the 10th, with Ted’s surgery being on the 8th at New York Presbyterian Hospital. During the week preceding the surgery, Ted will be undergoing a lot of testing – I guess to get a baseline before the surgery. We are both very excited to get there and get more info. So far, the people we have dealt with at the Rogosan Institute have been wonderful.
Ted is currently at his bi-annual…
Read more...I would like to thank our friends for coming up with the idea of this website and for thinking of making a blog section to help keep everyone updated! And, I thank all of our friends and family for wanting to stay updated on what’s going on with us and for constantly surrounding us with positive thoughts and prayers!
I know there are some people who have come across information about what’s going on with the Schiele’s fairly recently so I am going to include a little background information to help you get caught up. If you already know all of…
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