In Support of Amanda Stinson
Amanda Has a Rare Leukemia. Let’s Show Up for Her.
If you've ever met Amanda, you know she has a way of making people feel like old friends. She's warm, free-spirited, and genuinely curious about the people around her.
She's an artist, stone aficionado, and pizza goddess with a whimsical streak, equally capable of a deep conversation or being completely, proudly silly and irreverent. She loves hard, laughs easily, and has built a community around her simply by being Amanda.
She's also tough.
But right now, she's facing something that even Amanda can't muscle through on her own.
But right now, she's facing something that even Amanda can't muscle through on her own.
This summer, after months of increasing weakness, easy bruising, shaking hands, slow healing, and the feeling that something just wasn't right, bloodwork showed that Amanda's blood counts were dangerously abnormal.
After weeks of testing and specialist appointments, a bone marrow biopsy in September confirmed hairy cell leukemia, a rare form of blood cancer.
After weeks of testing and specialist appointments, a bone marrow biopsy in September confirmed hairy cell leukemia, a rare form of blood cancer.
There is very good reason for hope.
Hairy cell leukemia usually responds well to treatment, and many people experience long remissions.
But Amanda has significant involvement of her bone marrow, leaving her with anemia, very low infection-fighting white blood cells, and low platelets. Treatment can't wait, and getting through it safely is going to take time.
But Amanda has significant involvement of her bone marrow, leaving her with anemia, very low infection-fighting white blood cells, and low platelets. Treatment can't wait, and getting through it safely is going to take time.
Leaving home to get well
Amanda's doctors are recommending chemotherapy followed by immunotherapy, with frequent bloodwork and close monitoring as her immune system and blood counts recover.
Because her counts are already so low, her doctors want her close to a hospital during treatment in case she needs additional care or a blood transfusion.
Because her counts are already so low, her doctors want her close to a hospital during treatment in case she needs additional care or a blood transfusion.
That means leaving her home, her husband, and her life in Northern California for an estimated three to five months and temporarily relocating to Oregon, where she can be near a major cancer center and surrounded by family, including her sister, who is a doctor.
In typical Amanda fashion, she's trying to look at the bright side. She'll have her own room, a backyard, an air purifier, and beautiful cedar trees. She's decided to “pretend it's a vacation” because, well... that's very Amanda, isn't it?
Amanda expects to be unable to work for at least six months from the discovery of her illness through treatment and recovery.
At the same time, she'll face travel expenses, gas and hotels for appointments, the costs of temporarily living away from home, and medical expenses that are still difficult to predict as she works through insurance coverage across state lines.
Why we're raising $77,000
Our goal is to give Amanda enough financial breathing room to get through the coming months, without having to worry about how quickly she can get back to work.
Funds raised will help replace lost income and cover travel, temporary relocation, medical appointments and testing, insurance deductibles and out-of-pocket expenses, and the everyday bills that don't stop simply because someone gets cancer.
There are still unknowns.
What isn't unknown is that Amanda has spent a lifetime deeply connecting with people, loving them with all her heart, making them feel special, and showing up as completely and unmistakably herself.
You know it.
I know it.
There is only one Amanda Stinson.
I know it.
There is only one Amanda Stinson.
And now it's our turn to show up for her.
If you can donate, thank you. If you can't, sharing Amanda's story is another way to help.
Let's give her the time and space she needs to get through treatment, get strong and get back home to Point Arena.
Updates
Keep up to date as needs change.
Oct 19, 2026
timeless, connected, alive
I understand my immune system is low. I understand pathogens lurk e...
Oct 14, 2026
Safe (and slow) In Oregon
I made it safely to Oregon. I made it on time to my first doctor's ...
Oct 08, 2026
What i carry with me
My open suitcases had been sitting on the bedroom floor for at leas...
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- Created Sep 29, 2026
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