01/06/17 UPDATE: We did it! Together, we reached the $35,000 goal for Byron. THANK YOU to everyone that gifted your hard-earned money to benefit Byron and to everyone that shared this site and spread the word.  However, Byron's upcoming medical need goes BEYOND $35,000. We are going to leave this donation page up over the next several months for anyone who would still like to donate. We will likely change the goal once we better know what that need looks like. Since this One-to-One page limits how much we can post, we have also created a Facebook page to continue to provide updates about Byron’s transplant journey and monetary need. It is a public page and you can view without being a member of Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/groups/583883108479162/
On behalf of the Boyd-Waltermyer-Lins-Maters Family, thank you and God bless!

12/27/16 UPDATE: Byron's transplant is scheduled for February 1.  January is filled with testing, prep and chemo starting with testing on January 3.

12/22/16: First, thank you for taking the time to visit this page, learn more about Byron’s need, or to donate. He and his family appreciate the help you can provide, and covet the prayers for the Lord’s will to be done. All donations are TAX DEDUCTIBLE, and are appreciated more than words could express. Our brother Byron Boyd is fighting an aggressive form of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL).  His family has organized this fundraising campaign to help him and his wife, Michal Ann, pay for the ongoing expenses related to his upcoming bone marrow transplant. 

To summarize:

• Byron is young and has a whole life ahead of him. He was diagnosed at age 31; the average CLL diagnosis age is 71.
• The Boyds have a young family with 3 daughters, 4 years old and younger.
• His family is faced with financial crisis. Approximately $35,000 in costs are estimated to keep the family afloat, and cover healthcare and out-of-pocket expense (if the 6-month surgery and recovery process goes well).
• He is receiving a bone marrow transplant at Johns Hopkins Hospital in February 2017. His brother Brandon is his donor, and will be flying from Texas.
• Because of his fragile immune system, Byron needs 24-hour care and needs to recover close to Hopkins. He and Michal Ann are relocating to on-site patient housing for approximately 70 days which will NOT be covered by insurance.
• Byron faces a minimum 4- to 6-month recovery during which he CANNOT work to pay off associated expenses.
• Byron suffers from an autoimmune disorder that prevents his body from producing antibodies to keep him healthy or to even fight the everyday cold. As a result, he has endured 3 major infections requiring multiple hospitalizations in the past two years.

$35,000 is our current goal. Byron and Michal Ann face significant expenses. Some of the larger costs include COBRA Coverage ($17,320), Housing near Johns Hopkins ($6,339) and current balance on previous medical treatment ($11,498).

For more specifics, please read on:
Byron was originally diagnosed with CLL in December 2014.  He began chemo in January 2015 and achieved remission. The cancer returned after only six months and by July 2016 his lymph nodes had swollen to a size that made it difficult to turn his head. He started oral chemotherapy treatment and went for more testing where it was discovered that he has a more aggressive form of CLL than originally diagnosed. The oral chemo put him back into remission, but he was told that there is no other good FDA approved treatment option for his specific type of CLL and autoimmune disease and that if the oral chemo stopped working, there may be no other options. Since a bone marrow transplant must be done while in remission, his doctor recommended that Byron have one as soon as possible to give him his best chance. He is scheduled for an allogeneic bone marrow transplant in February 2017. He will be unable to work for the entirety of his treatment. Michal Ann, a stay-at-home mom, has started a LuLaRoe business to help off-set some lost income. With unemployment and disability income and with Michal Ann working, they are unable to keep up with the cost of insurance and current medical bills. To complicate things further, Byron needs to move within a safe distance of the hospital for daily/emergency treatment while he is in recovery and insurance will not cover this cost. The bottom line: They are going to need some significant help and prayers to keep afloat. 
Your generous donation, at any amount, is tax deductible. To send a donation by mail or over the phone or to donate anonymously, you may call the Bone Marrow BMCF at 800-365-1336.