If you’ve been on a trip to Oasis, you’ve likely met Jess and Fred.
As the Global Outreach and Child Advocacy Coordinator, Jess hosts visiting groups and works closely with staff in the U.S. and Kenya. Her husband Fred is our resident pastor, guiding students with spiritual wisdom.
This past spring, Jess went to the doctor thinking she had a parasite; instead, doctors discovered stage 3A colon cancer. After immediate surgery, she endured her first round of chemotherapy. In August, she started 16 weeks of additional chemo and immunotherapy then will go through 26 weeks of just immunotherapy—in total, 42 weeks of treatment.
“Emotionally, I am feeling great at the moment. But you know with cancer, it’s a roller coaster,” says Jess. “After I started chemo, I can’t say I felt joy, but I still felt thankfulness. After hearing about the new chemo and immunotherapy plan, I definitely felt like I wanted to cry. But through all of this, I have had the best support system.”
Would you join us in praying for Jess, Fred, and their daughter? They are so dear to our Oasis family and help create an environment of safety where children can encounter the enduring love of God.
They have offered steady support for so many students, and now we get to support them. Here are some specific prayer requests Jess shared:
- That this new regimen of chemo and immunotherapy will treat me well! We can pray boldly for NO side effects
- For no complications or infectionsÂ
- For God to provide strength over these next 42 weeks of treatmentÂ
- For joy, even as I walk through this valley
- For my husband and daughter, who are walking through this with me. For strength for my husband, my wonderful caregiver
- That God will make a way for our family to be able to travel to the U.S. together sooner rather than laterÂ
- For my parents and family back home in Georgia, as it’s not easy to be so far away from their daughter/sister going through cancer
In challenging seasons, we’re so grateful we can come to you with prayer requests and know you’re walking in this valley with us. Thank you for praying for Jess and her family!
On mission together,
Laura Jacobs
U.S. Operations SpecialistÂ
P.S. If you’d like to send a prayer or message of encouragement directly to Jess, please email her husband, Fred, at: [email protected]
