Jan's Battle to Beat Ovarian Cancer

       Hi everyone! My name is Ansley Culver & I am Jan Bailey Sheppard's middle daughter. I am speaking on behalf of my step-dad, Greg, my sisters, Ashton & Allison, our entire family, & our mom's friend & former co-worker, Mrs. Patti Dean. Just 7 days after returning from visiting my little family & me in Oklahoma in August of 2014, our mom, Jan, was admitted into Tift Regional Medical Center (TRMC) for severe gastrointestinal issues. The physician stopped the bleeding, but ordered two CT scans in order to rule out any aortic bleeding. Although there were no signs of aortic bleeding, the CT scans did reveal tumors on her ovaries. We are so grateful for the doctor's diligence, expertise, and concern that he had for our mom's health. We praise God for using one illness to reveal a much more serious illness, Stage 3c ovarian cancer. God revealed the tumors just before the cancer would have turned into Stage 4, which would have given her a very dim prognosis. We continue to praise Him for that revelation!

Since our mom's diagnosis in August, she has been hospitalized at TRMC & Northside Hospital in Atlanta for a total of 21 days. During those hospital stays, she also had major surgery & had two ports surgically placed for chemotherapy. Our mom is traveling to Macon every week for her chemo treatments & also to Atlanta once a month for follow-ups with her gynecologic oncologist. She has also had to make several trips to Macon between treatments to be given injections that help stimulate the production of white blood cells.

 As we all are aware, just one ER visit alone can cost anywhere from several hundred to several thousand dollars. My mom's dear friend, Mrs. Patti Dean, & I designed a t-shirt for this fundraiser in hopes of raising money for medical bills & other expenses. We also hope to help raise awareness & promote early detection with this fundraiser. Signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer can be found at www.cancer.org and other reputable websites.

Our mom has devoted over 33 years to teaching her "other children" & isn't one to ask for help. So, we (her daughters & friend Patti) are asking for her. Many people have asked about other ways to help support our mom during her fight against cancer. She has received amazing support & prayers from so many of you. We hope this t-shirt fundraiser will provide the opportunity for all who feel led to help our mom and step-dad financially, as well as raise awareness.

We could not be more humbled, touched, & encouraged by the incredible outpouring of love & support that so many of you have shown for our mom. We thank you all for loving our amazing wife, mom, sister, aunt, & nana, teacher, & friend. Each prayer & uplifting word of support helps our mom move one step closer to making a full recovery. With your support in our t-shirt fundraiser for Jan Bailey Sheppard, we can relieve some of the financial burdens, thus placing the focus solely on her recovery. Thank you for your generosity in helping support her while she fights this battle against ovarian cancer! 
                                               God Bless Y'all! 
Greg, Ashton, Allison, Ansley, Josh, Kayden, Jantzen, our family, & Patti 
                                                   TEAM JAN