Indies Unite for Joshua - Heroes All

Two weeks ago my twenty-one year old son's heart stopped beating in the Intensive Care Unit at Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, NC. His heart had succumbed to the poisons released as chemotherapy destroyed the rogue T-Cells produced by the Leukemia ravaging his young body. The doctors, nurses, and technicians kept his blood flowing and lungs breathing for twenty minutes while they worked to restart his heart. Every one of them is a hero. They saved my son's life.

I posted about my son's diagnosis of Acute T-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia. I told his story, and said farewell to friends online as I prepared to spend every waking moment helping him battle the disease. My friends responded. The Indie community turned out in force, led by a dear friend I've never met in person - author Eden Baylee.

Eden organized Indies Unite for Joshua on IndieGoGo. The response was phenomenal! My fellow writers, Indies and traditional, have donated books, services, blog posts, and a massive twitter campaign to raise money for my son's treatment.

I cannot put into words my gratitude. Hundreds of people whom I only know through contact on the internet are pouring out love, prayers, and hard earned money to save my son. They too are heroes, along side his doctors and nurses. These people, who know me only from my writing and online friendship, have become my family, my dearest friends, praying and fighting for my son's survival. They are the best example of what the Indie author movement is all about.

I am also amazed at the diversity of the response to my post, and the unlikely unity. Many have offered prayer and thoughts for Joshua's recovery - Protestants, Catholics, Jews, Buddhists, pagans, and atheists. People from around the world and across the political spectrum have contacted me. All opening their hearts, and offering their faith and love, in one united voice. All division of faith, politics, and nationality dissolve as they reach across the World Wide Web to aid my son and my family.

My son is a philosophy major. He has said that the response to the campaign initiated by someone he doesn't know has restored his faith in mankind. The generosity and caring words of total strangers has shown that our world is still filled with love and compassion. In the spirit of the Indie movement, Eden's campaign - Indies Unite for Joshua - is bringing together a divers group of authors and readers in solidarity for one individual. They are all heroes!

xoxox

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