Family sacrifices privacy for ailing father

Thornhill Liberal
March 10, 2014
By Simone Joseph

For Nadine Block, there was no other option.

To fight for her father’s life, the 23-year-old had to use social media as her tool.

“We had to go to the public for help. We wanted to be quick and accessible to the public,” she said. “Social media, we knew, could capture people all over the world. There was no option, no hemming or hawing. There was no question about it.”

Her father, Kevin Block, was 56 when he was diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in June of 2013. Following the diagnosis, the Thornhill resident endured various chemotherapies without success.

Mr. Block’s illness left him unable to work. As a result, he lost his business, Sign-A-Rama, specializing in custom-made signs.

When Ms Block describes her father, she could be describing many dads. He is laid back and easy-going, she says. He loves food, sailing and being outdoors. He loves spending time with friends and family and enjoys the simple things in life. He has long been self-employed. He and his family moved to Canada from South Africa in 1994.

The medication Mr. Block needs costs $12,500 per month and is part of a clinical medical trial only available in the U.S. Ms Block hopes the medication will put her father into remission and stop the cancer cells from multiplying.

When Ms Block and brother Jamie, 17, received the devastating news that there was no cure for their father in Canada, they launched a social media campaign called Keeping Kev to fight for his life. They created Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts to share their father’s story.

Within minutes, people were liking, commenting and sharing the information about Mr. Block.

“It was amazing,” Ms Block said.

They raised $40,000 in the first three days. More and more people read and shared Keeping Kev. To date, more than $100,000 has been raised. Their ultimate goal is to raise $200,000.

The next step is to see how Mr. Block reacts to the clinical medical trial medication, which he began taking in January.

The family now has the funds to pay for six months of medication, Ms Block said.

Embarking on this mission was overwhelming for the Block family, she said.

“Your life is private. Then, within one second, everyone knows what is going on,” Ms Block said. “Quickly, we got over it and realized we had to do what we had to do. We have to forget that our lives are not private and go with this. That’s how we will get the money we need,” she said.

So far, this journey has been an intense one, according to Ms Block.

“It has been a whirlwind experience. It has been incredible that we have created this success. We’ve learned to take it one day at a time,” Ms Block said. “We don’t have a next step. We’re just living life.”

To donate:
- Go to youcaring.com/medical-fundraiser/keeping-kev/117076
- Do an e-transfer to keepingkev@gmail.com from your online banking account.
- Give to the Kevin Block Trust Fund at the Scotiabank at Bathurst and Centre streets.

For more information, go to www.facebook.com/hashtag/keepingkev