Ask Me About Billy (New T-Shirts)

Ever since Thursday, September 23 (the day we found about Billy had gastric cancer), I've wanted to make t-shirts.  The family of my friends, Daniel and Casey, had shirts made when Daniel was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma (cancer), and the shirts had a way of helping us to feel like we were all in it together.  We'd wear them every Wednesday, and it would remind us to pray.  It was also a great way to tell the story because people would ask us what our shirts meant.

Rallying Around Daniel and Casey. The shirts say "More than Conquerors" in 12 languages. The phrase comes from Romans 8:37: "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us."

We Now Have Shirts for Billy!
The design was inspired by Sara's t-shirt, which she made the day we found out about Billy.

Sara's Shirt (left)

They come from the collaborative efforts of Stephanie (sister of Melissa) and Bobby (my brother).  [Many thanks to both of you!!!]

So here they are!

Men's Shirt (back)

Women's Shirt (front)

We have men's and women's shirts, sweat shirts, and shirts for kids.  The fronts say "Ask me about BILLY."  And the backs have the blog logo and web address.

Now, we know that Billy does not go by Billy in all parts of the world.  With family, he's Billy.  In the army, he's Will or Cooter or Wheel [and probably some other nicknames I haven't yet heard. ]  Family does not call him Will, and army friends do not call him Billy [at least not without getting away with it.]  Those are his rules.  Interestingly enough, however, people everywhere are starting to call him Billy.  Our favorite surgeon (an army guy) calls him Billy.  When he was really sick (with the septic infection), the ICU nurse tried calling him Will, but he didn't really respond.  "Try calling him Billy," I suggested.  She did, and he immediately responded.  So that's why the shirts say "Ask me about BILLY."

Disclaimer:  Billy would like all "offenders" of the name policy to know that he's keeping track of who calls him Billy; and when he gets out of Walter Reed, he will exact retribution from all such persons.  J

Where Can I Get These Shirts?
We've set up an account with zazzle.com. Our "store" is
http://www.zazzle.com/willshope2010.

And here are some discount codes.  The Vetrans Day Sale expires at the end of today, so you'll have to move quickly to use that code.  I'm not sure how much longer the other codes will work.

• $2 off T-shirts:  VTRNSDAYSALE
• 10% off T-shirts:  10PRCTOFFTEE
• Free Shipping (Orders of $50 or More):  FREESHIPFORU

Note:  zazzle.com will donate 10% of each order to us.  We'll use the money for expenses that come up while Billy is in the hospital.

T-Shirts and Praying
Many of us pray for Billy every day, but we wanted to set aside one day each week for focused prayer.  Once we get the shirts, we'll be wearing them on Thursdays.

How Is Billy?
He took herceptin yesterday (by IV), and it didn't feel very good.  He was really tired after that.  Last night, he said his body felt "heavy."  This morning, he "ached all over."  Herceptin isn't the same thing as chemo, but it is a destructive drug.  Here are some things we can pray for...

• The herceptin to destroy lots of cancer cells.
• Billy's stomach to start working so he can enjoy food for Thanksgiving!  
• Billy's intestines would start working like they're supposed to.
• Billy's body to fully recover from the herceptin.

Thanks for praying!

Side Note:  Billy moved to a new room today.  We have the same amount of space.  It's just a quieter room, (right next to the family room), and the view is amazing!  You can now find Billy in Ward 71, room 7144.