I made some special limited numbers of Glass Fry for the JOJO EVENT.

Get them while they last and give to a great cause!

Who is JOJO? It was brought to my attention that I didn't explain Joey's situation very well. I'll explain it now and add it to all the posts. I met Joey online through fishing forums and my jigs. I was starting to get good at painting jigs and started to sell them. Joey and I started to talk about jigs and fishing a lot. I don't remember exactly how I found out about his medical situation. His body is unable to fight off tumors. I can't remember the name of it. I think N2 something. I'll have to ask him. He's been fighting it for 14 years now. Before I met him he had surgery to remove what they could. In the process he lost a good amount of hearing, one of his eyes didn't work so well, one of his legs became weaker. This also caused his Equilibrium to become off. Walking on uneven surfaces was difficult. He would be treated with a form of Chemo. Every 6 months he would dread going in for his MRI. He knew the day would come again where he would need to face it. Our Friendship grew as time went on. He went through a rough patch mentally. I asked him if he would want to paint jigs? He didn't think he could but I persisted. He finally agreed to try. He base painted all of the Splatter Ice Reapers you guys are using. It lifted his spirit and gave him a sense of purpose again. I enjoyed messaging him while we both were working on jigs. We would send pics of what we were working on. Things were good for some time. We would do Mental checks with each other. He helped me through a lot of bad times just by being there. Still does. A lot of you have helped me through my battles with depression. You know who you are. Over a year ago things started to go wrong again. Joey was all over the place mentally. It seemed like he was losing control. It wasn't making sense. He started ending up in the hospital. He felt off and couldn't figure out what was going on. The doctors would get him settled down, check him out.....send him home. He kept telling me that something is wrong. I told him he knows his body and if this isn't right he needs to find the right help. Well, finally he got the right help. The Tumors had grown again and they were messing with his nervous system. He ended up needing 2 surgeries. One in his spine and one cranial. The first surgery was set. He was very scared but decided to go forward with it. Even if it meant maybe losing the use of his legs. Unfortunately that's exactly what came of it. He was set to rehab and got covid. He continued to have issues from the surgery. They had to put a trach in and a feeding tube. He seemed to go backwards but was still fighting. He had an extended stay in the hospital but finally was able to come home. I couldn't believe what he had been through. 1 step forward 2 steps back. When he came home his Guardian Angel, Tina, would have to quit her job to care for Joey. He was chair bound. He couldn't lay down because of the discomfort. He didn't sleep well. It was wearing on him. Time has passed. We still chatted online often. I noticed has conversation was dropping off. It felt like he was just going through the motions. He was getting depressed by the lack of being able to do anything for himself. I decided it was time for an in person visit. Joey lives a little over 2 hours away from me in Boone Iowa. I hate that drive. It's boring. (LOL) I went to see him. He was in a chair with wheels at the kitchen table. I guess that's where he spends most of his time. We talked as we sat at the table. I could tell by the way he looked at me that he was worn out. All I could picture was Rocky getting the crap kicked out of him but waving his boxing glove saying bring it on. He brought meaning to a lot of us. Never Quit was his phrase. He even made stickers. He brought a lot of us in Iowa and beyond together. I have many new friends because of him. We have helped him and he has Helped many of us in only a way that he can. He's become like a little brother to me. When I visit we always go out to a Chinese Buffet. Even on this day he insisted as it became tradition. Tina got his other wheel Chair and a small hoist contraption that I remember all to well when my dad was dying of Cancer. She hoisted him up and set him down in the other chair. We went and had that Buffet just like always. I left for home. The next day he ended up in the hospital. Fluid around a lung, UTI, and a Bladder Stone or something like that. I just can't believe how much he has gone through. While at the hospital the call was made that he needed Hospice Care. He would return home if they filled out the paperwork. They did. He has begun taking morphine for his pain. He seemed to come back to life. He is able to sleep in bed. He is getting good sleep now. The pain isn't wearing him down. My talks with him have been more like the old days. I'm cherishing every moment I get. The Doctors are giving him 2-3 months....maybe a little more. He lives with Tina and 3 children. They have been living on next to nothing for the last year +. The last thing I want them worrying about is money. I felt I could do something to help them out. This is why we are doing JOJO Bucks.