Great food, great entertainment, and an even greater cause. What would be better than spending your Sunday basking in the smell of BBQ and winning cool raffle prizes such as a beach vacation, all while helping a family in need? On Sunday, February 18th, at the Bellmead Civic Center (3900 Parrish Bellmead, TX 76705) from noon to 5pm, you can do just that! Tom Moore of Tom’s Smokehouse is making his mouth watering BBQ available to you once more for a great CAUSE. So who is the guy that can get the retired Bellmead BBQ guru to open his doors to the public once more? His name is Josh Stone.
Josh is a 37 year old devoted husband, father of five, son, brother, Air Force Master Sergeant, and loyal friend who loves spending time with his boys. Josh graduated from La Vega High School in 1998 and enlisted in the Air Force the following December. Shortly after his enlistment, he married his high school sweetheart, Jennifer in 1999.
Their relationship has endured five deployment tours, which included Operation Southern Watch and Operation Enduring Freedom after 911. These challenges only made their love stronger and they became parents to five amazing boys, ages 8 months to 14 years old.
In November of 2016 our family was given the devastating news that a mass found in his rectum was a neuroendocrine tumor (NET), also known as carcinoid cancer…. The big ”C”. After undergoing multiple surgeries, pathology reports showed metathesis to the lymph nodes, scapula, and spine. We are now fighting stage 4 cancer.
This doctor said Josh’s last option is the medication that he has been waiting on, PRRT, which is still waiting for approval from the FDA here in the U.S. However, this treatment is offered in Switzerland and has been in use for decades there with positive results. The downside is it comes with a heavy price tag. This is why we are inviting you to come join us on February 18th at our “Sone Strong Fundraiser”, to help us get one step closer to getting Josh the treatment he needs.
Despite everything, Josh is still full of life and loves making people laugh with his witty sense of humor, but what makes him the happiest is helping those around him. Josh still says he is happy “Happy I am still here to spend this year with my family. Happy I got to bring Jax into this world. Happy I got to spend lots of quality time with my boys. Happy I got to see lots of friends who have come long distances to see us and most of all Happy to spend the last year with the love of my life Jen. She has really got me through this. We have been blessed by countless people this year that have showed my family so much love and compassion that it brings tears to my eyes every time I think how lucky I am. Lucky to have so many friends here to support us during this battle. I will continue to be happy even in the worst of days. I will continue to feel blessed to still walk this Earth. I will never take life for granted and I will never give up the fight.”
Help us bring the community together and surround the Stone family with positivity and love with our “Stone Strong Fundraiser”! Bring the whole family for some afternoon fun involving food, raffles, bake sale, live music and free face painting for the kids... or the kids at heart!
It’s free to come enjoy and only $10 a plate for a heaping serving of BBQ goodness! For more information visit our Facebook page or our Donation site.
Editor's note: This is a guest post from one of our readers, Taryn Smith.
