When treatment requires traveling hundreds of miles, caregivers face an additional layer of stress that can feel insurmountable. But as these families discovered, help is available—and it can change everything.

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Martha & Henry: "A Chance to Beat Cancer"

Henry and Martha had been looking forward to a quiet retirement on their small farm in Alabama. They'd spent years as foster and adoptive parents, giving back to their community. Now, with their children grown, they were ready to enjoy some peace.

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Then came the diagnosis: Stage 2 spindle cell melanoma—a fast-growing, dangerous form of skin cancer. Henry's best chance at survival was treatment at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida. But their savings had dwindled, and repeated long-distance trips weren't in the budget.

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For Martha, watching her husband face cancer was devastating enough. Figuring out how to get him to treatment added another weight to an already heavy burden.

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That's when they found Mercy Medical Angels. Through our partnership with American Airlines, we arranged commercial flights so Henry could reach Moffitt Cancer Center for his life-saving treatment.

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"The trauma of having cancer is devastating, but having the help of Mercy Medical Angels to be able to travel to the best treatment center for a chance to beat cancer helps make it a lot less stressful."

— Martha

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Today, Henry has returned home to Alabama, continuing his recovery with Martha by his side.

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Ron & Benjamin: "We're Not in This Struggle Alone"

Ron is a minister at a small church and a father of six. Several of his children have complex medical needs, including his son Benjamin, who was diagnosed with autoimmune encephalitis—a condition where the immune system attacks the brain.

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For over a year, Benjamin was sick with no diagnosis. Local doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong. Finally, specialists at Cincinnati Children's Hospital identified the condition and created a treatment plan. The problem? Ron's family lives nowhere near Cincinnati, and he hasn't received a raise since 2020.

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"We're a family of eight," Ron explained. "Needless to say, our finances are tight."

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Through Angel Flight Mid-Atlantic, volunteer pilots have been flying Ron and Benjamin to Cincinnati Children's for the past year and a half. These pilots donate their time, aircraft and fuel to make these trips possible.

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"One time when weather grounded us in Cincinnati, the pilots rented us a car so we could complete the trip. Benjamin still needs another year of treatment. But this time, we're not in this struggle on our own."

— Ron

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For Ron, the flights aren't just transportation—they're proof that strangers will go out of their way to help a family they've never met.

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Natisha & Sage: "My Daughter Is Thriving"

Natisha knows what it's like to be a caregiver while managing your own health challenges. She has chronic conditions that cause pain and fatigue, making it nearly impossible to both work and care for her daughter Sage.

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Sage was recently diagnosed with Börjeson-Forssman-Lehmann syndrome (BFLS), a rare genetic disorder, along with juvenile idiopathic arthritis that causes daily pain. The specialists who can help Sage are in Salt Lake City—hours away from their rural home in Southern Utah.

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"I had to choose where to prioritize my limited energy," Natisha said, "and I chose caring for Sage. But that meant driving long distances to medical care was putting a strain on our finances."

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Mercy Medical Angels sent gas cards that made the trips possible. For Natisha, it meant more than just fuel—it meant Sage could restart the therapies and treatments she desperately needed.

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"Thanks to Mercy Medical Angels sending us gas cards, my daughter is thriving and getting better every day. We appreciate all the help!"

— Natisha

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After one recent treatment trip, Natisha was even able to take Sage to an aquarium—a small but meaningful dose of normalcy after everything they'd been through.

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Joey's Parents: "What a Blessing"

When Joey was a baby, his parents noticed changes in his behavior and mood. By age three, he had developmental delays and worsening vision. The diagnosis: autism and Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF-1), a rare condition that causes tumors to grow along nerve endings.

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Joey's parents learned to accommodate his autism—establishing fixed routines, letting him bring dinosaur toys to appointments. But the NF-1 required intensive treatment: 18 months of low-dose chemotherapy to shrink tumors growing on his optic nerves.

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The specialists at the neurofibromatosis center in Birmingham, Alabama were almost 240 miles from their home in Mississippi. Joey's parents couldn't afford gas for such a long drive every week.

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Gas cards from Mercy Medical Angels made the trips possible. Now two months into treatment, Joey's vision is improving and his overall health is getting better.

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"We are so thankful for this travel assistance, as it is a huge help to making these weekly trips to medical care possible. What a blessing!"

— Joey's parents

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What These Stories Have in Common

Every family's situation is different—different diagnoses, different distances, different challenges. But these caregivers share something important: they found help when they needed it most.

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A few themes emerge:

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• Transportation is often an afterthought — until it becomes a crisis. Most families don't think about how they'll get to treatment until they're faced with the reality of distance and cost.

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• Help exists — but many people don't know about it. These families found Mercy Medical Angels through social workers, online searches or word of mouth. We're working to make sure more families know these resources are available.

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• Small acts of support create big ripples. A gas card. A volunteer flight. A phone call from someone who understands. These things don't cure illness, but they can transform the experience of getting through it.

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• Caregivers need support too. When we help with transportation, we're not just helping patients—we're helping the families who are holding everything together.

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Your Story Matters Too

If you're a caregiver reading this, we want you to know: what you're doing is important, and it's hard, and you don't have to do it alone.

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