AES Cancer Foundation’s 2nd annual golf fundraiser to help blood cancer patients

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Rick and Robin Williams have been living in an RV outside of Richmond since February — not by choice.

“It’s a tremendous burden, but that’s what you have to do if you want to live,” Rick Williams said.

He has myelofibrosis, an uncommon blood cancer, and in order to get the stem cell transplant and treatment he needs, the pastor of CrossLife Church in Portsmouth and his wife had to leave their Suffolk home and move closer to VCU Medical Center.

“You’ve got to live within 30 minutes of the hospital. You have a two-hour window, if you get sick, a flu, a fever, anything. You got to get to the hospital,” he said.

Doctors also require that patients have a full-time caretaker, which means neither Rick nor Robin have worked in more than a year.

“So if you don’t have money saved up or people helping you eventually the finances run out,” he said.

This is where a game of golf and the AES Cancer Foundation came to help.

“I know firsthand what they’re going through. I know how much of a stress it can be,” said Tripp Seed.

Seed lost his wife Angela to blood cancer in 2022. The Portsmouth family had so much support during Angela’s fight at Duke Medical Center that they created the AES Cancer Foundation to pass it on to others.

“We were trying to find somewhere to stay and we didn’t have to reach out to them. They, they reached out to us and was like, we heard what was going on, what do you help with?” Robin Williams said.

The inaugural golf tournament raised $29,000 and helped the Williams family and 50 others pay electric bills, make mortgage payments and stock refrigerators.

“Just take a little bit off their plate at a time and hopefully, you know, they can, like I said, they can focus on their recovery and their treatments,” Seed said.

But with so many families in need, Angela’s father, Frank Eates, said: “We had to stop assistance until more donations were received.”

At this year’s golf tournament they hope to raise more money and answer more prayers.

“It never goes wrong with helping people. You put others first and God bless you for it,” Rick Williams said.

Rick is hoping doctors will clear him to move home around Thanksgiving, but his recovery will take several more years.

The 2nd Annual AES Golf Tournament is happening on Friday, October 4 at Sleepy Hole Golf Course in Suffolk. To register a team, click here . To become a sponsor click here , or click here to volunteer.

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