Hello, my name is Chevy. Some of you may or may not know me. Doctors have told me that I have 6 months to live. I don't believe it. God has plans for me I know it. Backing up in time, this is my story. . I smoked weed for 28 years and did drugs for 12 years, or until I was 32 years old. I played in rock bands since I was 18 and my teen years were not so good either. During Jr. High and High School, I rarely attended and I never graduated. I became a carpenter and worked very hard, but probably partied even harder. I've traveled across the country with a couple of famous rock bands such as Tesla, Def Leppard and hung out with some of the members from Y&T, this was back in the late 80's and through the 90's.  

Back when I was 31 years old, I lost one of my closest friends in a car accident, due to cocaine, alcohol and weed. I went another year partying and making mistakes. I still did not get it. I had lost my drivers license for stupid reasons, so I got a bicycle. Let me go back a bit again, I was raised a Catholic, an alter boy until I was 18; I still didn't get it! I didn't let the Lord speak to me EVER! I would say stupid stuff like, "I don't care, I'll be lucky if I make it to 30". I was not on the right path. I'll be honest, I was having a lot of fun, so I thought. I just wish I would have listened to my parents more and chose better friends.

Enough of that! At 32 years old, riding a bike everywhere, I got off coke and started getting in shape.   I met a new group of friends and started mountain biking. I got really good and decided to try racing. I did pretty good, a lot of crashes, some broken ribs and some bruising. Next thing I knew, I got asked to race for a team and participate in a race series known as the NORBA Nationals. I went across the country again but was still smoking weed and drinking. That went on from 1997 until 2003, and in 2000 and 2002 I finished 6 th in the nation in the expert class. I had picked up a lot of sponsors and had a total blast racing downhill mountain bikes. I also owned my own business doing bathroom and kitchen remodels through this entire time, working 6 months and racing 6 months of the year.  

In 2003, I had a really bad crash. I broke 3 ribs, punctured my left lung, separated my shoulder and broke my wrist and chipped 4 teeth. I was laid up for 3 months. In a follow up appointment with my doctor, they discovered a tumor in my right eye, and in fact it was cancer, Ocular Melanoma. I underwent radiation, but it didn't work, so the eye came out December 15, 2004. It's gone. I went back to racing believe it or not.   At this point, I still did not have God in my life. I was still smoking weed and drinking. I was 41 years old when I did my last race in March 2005. Two months later, they found a spot on my liver, not from drinking, but from the cancer. The cancer had spread. I underwent two rounds of chemo and two different hospitals told me I was a dead man.

Here is where I feel God said, "Enough is enough". Because I wanted to live and I was really scared, I got with an all-natural doctor and she told me what to do. (Cleansing, detox, etc.) Another friend had passed away right at that same time from alcohol. I went to the funeral and I saw an old dear friend from high school, her name was Melanie. We hugged in the lobby and could not believe that Mike "Yas" was dead at just 42. As Melanie and I sat together, I broke down and told her about my condition, which I had just found out about the day before. I was crying like a baby. We said goodbye to Mike and then to each other.

Two months later another old friend stepped up to help, and I got going on the right direction health wise, but was still living without God in my life. By the end of these two months, it was July 20 th , 2005 and through another friend, Melanie was brought back into my life to help me go through the cleansing and detox process. I could not do it by myself. Two weeks into it, I asked her what she was doing that weekend. She told me she was going to church. I said, "What! That's not for me!" As that next week went by, not only was I really starting to like her, but my way of thinking was starting to change too. That next Friday, I asked her if I could go to that church with her. Saturday night, the last week in July, she picked me up and we went. I will never forget walking up to those doors and the man at the door, greeting people, his name was Pastor Dan. He put his hand out and shook my hand. This may not happen for everyone, but I got goose bumps! I knew right then and there that's where I needed to be. I went on to meet James Steiner, who really helped me out through a lot of tough times, and then I met Lisa Shera and told her my story. Next thing I knew, I'm doing a testimony for the church, which ended up touching a lot of lives. I was overwhelmed. Next I got water baptized. Man, I love Jesus at a hundred miles per hour. I am on fire for the Lord!  

Now it was time to prepare for the next stage of the cancer. Through the Lord, I feel I met all the right doctors.   I ended up at UCSF and there is where I meet Dr. Bob Warren. He said he could do what everyone else said they couldn't, but I had to put my trust in him just like I put my trust in God. But he had to let me know that I only had a 20% chance that I would even get off the operating table. So October 15, 2005, I had 2/3 of my liver removed and 15 tumors. Twelve hours on the table. Half way through, he came out to inform my mom and Melanie, that there was a lot of bleeding and I might not make it. But you all must know, in the operating room, right before the anesthesia was applied, I asked if it would be OK if I prayed with everyone in the operating room, and they let me. One of the nurses told me, that I was one of the first patients to have ever done that, and I think I touched everyone in that room. And guess what? I made it! I was still alive. It was tough, but I did really make it. When I was well enough, I got right back to church and I've gone to all three services, ever since.  

I met so many great people there, Pastor Ron, Pastor Rick, Pastor Alan and of course, Pastor James Craft and the whole staff. Through these tough times, I've really been able to share a lot with a close friend of mine, Pastor Dan, and I feel blessed to say that he feels that same about me. They've all been very good to me!   I know I've wanted to do something with the church; I didn't know what is was, so I just kept going. But now the cancer has spread to the bone in my neck, my lymph nodes in my chest and my kidney. I'm getting ready to go through radiation again; my doctors have told me that I have 6 months to live. I don't believe it. God has plans for me I know it. I trust in him and this might just be him talking to all of you. I have a great church family; I love each and every one of them. I have even met a very special family, the Koski's; they have taken me in as one of their own. And I love them all very much. I cannot work any more, my sister, Catherine and family help by having fundraisers for me and they have been very successful and cancer is not cheap. The bottom line is I trust in God and he knows it! He has provided for me and I'm not scared to die anymore. God will take me when he is ready and I will be too. I have a lot of people praying for me, friends and family, and people I don't even know. Thank you all so much for listening to my story and for your prayers.  

God bless,
Love, Chevy