Dave and Dawn met at Spring Arbor University their sophomore year of school in 1985. They had an early morning class together and Dawn would strategically sit in the back, knowing Dave would show up late, sneak in the back door, and have nowhere else to sit but by her. Dave played all four years of both baseball and basketball at Spring Arbor, having been recruited for the basketball team from his small, Class D, Catholic private school in Mt. Clemens, MI. Dave had the opportunity to play minor league ball after his sophomore year with the Seattle Mariners, but considering he hadn't quite reached his prime, and the fact he would be ineligible to play the rest of his college career, he decided to hold out for a better offer after getting another couple years of college and summer ball under his belt. However, after having an injury before his senior year, his dream of the major leagues began to fade.

Dave and Dawn married in 1989 and lived in the Metro Detroit area for several years prior to ending up in the Lansing area in 2000. They started a family in 1997 when their daughter was born, followed by two more boys. Sydney (12), Grant (10) and Devin (7) are Dave and Dawn's source of joy and are their motivation for constantly striving to be all that God has created them to be, in an effort to be the example God has called them to be as parents. Consistent with that, Dave and Dawn decided to bring Dawn home from her career as an insurance broker and eventually began home-schooling their children. God's timing was perfect in this transition as He allowed Dave's career in Information Technology to begin to blossom.

In addition to a day job, Dave always had the desire to work for himself and use his creativity and problem-solving skills to help others solve their problems; therefore he often involved himself in various ventures and side jobs to keep his dream alive. After much personal and professional development, God knew Dave was ready to fulfill his entrepreneurial dream and arranged for his earthly safety net to disappear; Dave was laid off from his job in January, 2009 and he hit the ground running. Knowing he had a family to provide for, he quickly applied all he had learned and sought out opportunities in sales and information technology. After only scratching the surface with a couple of business opportunities, Dave began a journey what has now become his greatest challenge yet.

In March of 2009, Dave's back began to bother him. Being 6'8", there was always a legitimate reason since he was living in a "short man's world.” He had also felt more fatigued than usual, but that seemed natural, given his highly stressful situation and continuing to burn the candles at both ends. Finally, after his back and rib pain continued to get worse, causing him to ultimately be bed-ridden at home, he finally decided to go to ER. Dawn and Dave's friend was an ER nurse at Ingham Regional Medical Center where she happened to be scheduled that night, which was the ultimate deciding factor for why they chose to go to that hospital

Dawn recalls Dave asking on the way to the ER if they were going to the "right" hospital. She casually responded, "Dave, you're run of the mill, of course this is the right hospital; Carrie's working tonight!" Little did they know God's providence in it all, in sending them to a hospital that would ultimately have the experts Dave needed for his condition. After having been at the hospital for less than two days, Dave was diagnosed on May 26th with Stage 3 Multiple Myeloma; cancer in his bones. Because of it's advanced state and an immediate concern of paralysis, Dave began radiation and high doses of steroids on May 27th. As a result of the disease he has multiple vertebral compression fractures, and a compromised sternum, causing excruciating pain.

The immediate plan for treatment is to go through kyphoplasty surgery (basically injecting a cement-like material into the vertebrae to provide stabilization and offer pain relief) on several of the fractured vertebrae and then begin chemotherapy shortly after. To date, Dave is waiting to know when his surgery will be scheduled.

In the meantime, Dawn stays at the hospital continuously, going home a few hours in the evening to see their children, and occasionally sleeping in a real bed at home. Both sides of the family have filled in the gap in many areas where it comes to maintaining the household, childcare, meals and most importantly emotional support. Dave and Dawn appreciate your support and prayers for their family.