Shane and Jonas Frehlich may live in Simi Valley, California, but their roots run deep all the way back to Canmore.
Shane and his newborn son are both battling illnesses at the same time, putting a financial strain on the young family, which includes wife Diane and two-year-old twins Max and Miles.
Pat and Gary Frehlich, longtime Canmore residents, are asking the community to get out next Wednesday (Dec. 3) for a fundraiser at the Canmore Hotel to help raise money for their son and grandson.
Pat, who many know as a bartender at the Canmore Legion and affectionately call Ma, said it is the second time her son Shane has been through chemotherapy for Acute Myeloid Leukemia. She said he now needs a bone marrow transplant and while they have insurance coverage, the financial strain is considerable.
“It has overwhelmed them, it is too much with all their medial needs,” she said.
Shane was first diagnosed two years ago after their twins were born at 28 weeks and were in intensive care for three months. The cancer came back at the same time Jonas was born at 33 weeks with a rare disorder called Beckwith Wiedemann Syndrome, a childhood overgrowth syndrome. It puts him at risk for kidney and liver tumors that will require ongoing blood tests and liver scans, as well as surgery for an enlarged tongue and to repair his abdominal muscles and tissue.
Pat said Shane has been through chemo again and the cancer has been blown away, however, that means he will need a bone marrow transplant to stay cancer free into the future and so far has not found a match.
He is a kinesiology professor at California State University, Northridge, and is still suffering financial stress from his first round of treatment as the twins stay in the NICU.
Friends have started a Go Fund Me page for Shane and Jonas’ Medical Fund that has raised $12,555 so far. It is hoped the Canmore event will show support for the Frehlich family and is being held at the Canmore Hotel at 7 p.m. on Wednesday (Dec. 3). Josh Smith and John Van Hall usually play Wednesday nights at The Ho and are asking people to make a donation at the door to support the event. There will also be raffle prizes and a 50/50 draw.
“We are just overwhelmed, we really are,” said Pat. “For the Canmore Hotel to step forward like that is amazing and I know the Tribe is doing a lot too.”
