Tom Block: Not Dark Yet

My friend Tom Block  is in serious trouble and needs our help.

Let me tell you about Tom. He’s smart , funny , a great storyteller , a terrific writer , and a critic of unusual insight . He’s lived a life  many of us would love to lead.

Most recently he took a two-year road trip around America, during which he kept us enthralled with beautiful photos  of his travels and funny and compelling stories  of the people he met. Unfortunately, this trip ended in a way none of us could have imagined: after having trouble breathing during a stay in Texas, he was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer. Returning to California, he found that the cancer had formed a metastatic lesion in his brain. Tom’s doctors expect him to pass no more than a year from now, and perhaps much sooner.

Everyone whose life has been touched by knowing Tom, and there are a lot of us, hope for the best possible outcome.  But the prognosis is challenging, and we want to make him comfortable as he goes through this harrowing process. Tom hasn’t had a permanent home since beginning his trip in September 2014, and while he’s arranging for his treatment, he needs to stabilize his living conditions and take care of the seemingly endless number of details that need to be dealt with at times like this.

If you know Tom, you’ll want to help us get him into a stable, comfortable situation. If you don’t know him, you’ve got a rare chance to help out a worthy stranger – and perhaps get to know him while there’s still time. Discover why the rest of us are so eager to do whatever we can for him.

Please give any amount you can to this GoFundMe campaign.  Every little bit helps, and every penny will be dedicated to the non-medical expenses stemming from his cancer: transportation, housing, food, and living expenses.  A good friend of Tom’s will be managing and distributing the funds to make sure he’s in compliance with the law and doesn’t jeopardize any of his Medi-Cal benefits.

There’s more we want you to know about Tom, and as this campaign continues, we hope he’ll get to tell you in his own words with his inimitable perspective. You can already find his ongoing account of his illness at Facebook , and we’ve created a dedicated page for updates on his treatment here ; Tom will update whenever he’s able.  But please keep checking back here, and spread the word wherever you can.

Every one of us wishes that we didn’t have to do this. But we do. So please get to know Tom, and help us ensure that economic stress doesn’t add to his misfortune. He’s not going to quit, and we’re not going to quit fighting for him.

https://www.gofundme.com/tomblocktreatment

Meanwhile, we also have set up a dedicated Facebook page where you can keep track of Tom’s situation away from his GoFundMe (which, please, please, PLEASE spread the word and give what you can!). Tom will be updating there as well as on his blog and Facebook, and please feel free to use this space to talk, ask questions, or whatever you want.

Meanwhile:

1. Check out the link below to the GoFundMe account we’ve set up to help him.
2. Give something — as much or as little as you can — to the account.
3. Spread the word to anyone and everyone you know so that they have a chance to help out too.

https://www.gofundme.com/tomblocktreatment is where to go.

Thank you so very much.