Our dear friend Lee Merrill is facing a serious illness, and he will be undergoing treatment over the coming months. He is currently waiting on final test results that will inform interventions over the next season, and we will update this page as more information becomes available. This space is for friends who would like to support Lee by helping with meals, tasks, errands, and transport during this time. ------- Medical Update ------ So far we have our diagnosis, which is advanced gastric cancer. We got good news that the tumors have high PD-1 expression, a marker we can exploit with additional first line immunotherapy meds, and we start chemo on the 16th in Fishersville and then we can move the infusions back to Lexington. The cancer restricts eating by mouth, thus superfine soups and smoothies are awesome, and it does sap our energy, so we need a lot of sleep, but so far its not causing a lot of pain, and we have a great team of doctors and a clear path to treatment. We hope this little update helps folks feel informed, and lets us focus on non-medical topics during visits :) Like families, architecture, spiritual learning, and the pursuit of peace and happiness. Love to all. The Merrills
Thank you, dear friends, for the incredible support, wishes, sustenance, hearthugs, and warm love these last nine, five, and three days. Thank you, brothers and sisters, for carrying Lee's body to the forest today - as the sun rose over the Blue Ridge - and laying him so elegantly to rest. Morgan, Jonathan, Peter, Jess, thank you. Thank you, Hunter and KB, for holding us close while we laid Lee into the earth at the Meadows. Thank you, Amanda, for reading from Gibran, and leading us in Ripple. Thank you Stephan, for leading me through the words when my eyes grew clouded. Thank you, Ajaan Cha, for your Dhamma on the river's flow, rightly down the gradient. By this and his own wisdom, Lee saw a right thing rightly. And thank you, Tom, for then setting Lee straight :) Thank you, Karen, for your care. Thank you, Nancy, for giving him our blessing. Thank you, Dusan, for leading us to fill his grave. Thank you, Mary and Anna, for your abiding strength. Thank you, Yolanda, Kitty, and Stevie, for keeping our spirits full, and drawing. While you were not with us today physically, as with so many who loved Lee, your love surrounded him through these weeks and days, and he loved you deeply and freely. Thank you, mountains, for taking our father back to your roots. And thank you, Lee, for guiding our family so honorably through this time of your passing.