Chapter 3 — No Coincidences
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AManda ryley was flourishing after everything you'd fought through. SHE was pregnant with her second child, her miro baby, and looking forward to a life free of cancer.

the baby is healthy, growing and thriving. Despite my own chAllenges, I also have an amazing circle of family and friends to support us, a wonderful total ler that always raises my spirits. A healthy miracle baby on the way that keeps me strong in my faith, and the husband of all husband's that I truly could not get through this without his strengths and empathy keeps me going.

We have .

learned we truly can't get there anything but .

SHE was like worried as a high rest primacy. They need to keep tracking her and tracking the baby. This really was a miracle trial.

But having already beaten cancer twice, AManda knew that another potential collapse could, beyond cards. Most relapses of hodgkin kinsman former are typically within the first three years following diagnosis.

Those of you who have been following us through this roller coaster know that this year was going to be a crazy of babies and translate well as if we didn't have enough on our plate. I have relapsed and relapsed a little sooner and a lot stronger than predicted. I am also nearly thirty eight weeks pregnant with mr. Cory rightly, our second miracle baby pregNancy has posted its own complications recently. Let me clarify, the baby is happy, healthy and growing right on track.

then the babies born, and he is a miracle baby that one of the chemo affected him. I want to say her baby shower was after he was born. I ever holding him at the baby shower, I don't know. Everything just seemed like this huge miracle. It's like the miracle baby, a miracle baby. And it's just like, okay, yeah, IT is a miracle, went through all this chemo, were told you probably won't will to have kids and you would damage your eggs and you have an ID and then you get pregnant and you sacrifice yourself going off of keo, hoping that is not going to get worse while you go through this pregNancy.

Amount of minds have been blessed with miracle after miracle, but even miracles don't last forever.

Well, unfortunately, this post isn't full of rainbows and butterflies. I went in for labs and scans to see the progression of the first treatment, only to find out that the cancer has meta sticks to my right lung. With the cancer being present in an organ, I have now been to classified a stage for.

I'm charlie webster. You're listening to skanda.

The roller coaster was relentless. IT was the third time in eighteen months that AManda heard the news. You have cancer. According to her babysitter, mahadei. IT was devastating to the whole .

family and met them at my daycare. Months or two months later, again, cancer came back. That's what he told me.

Coy told me that she's really sick. I don't know if she's gonna survive. He was crying.

I told him, curry.

you have to think about yourself and the baby now, a days in care of doctors for fully SHE goes on the mission again. Oh, no, I is a stage whole. SHE was so sick that SHE couldn't take care of the baby, and baby would stay at my host longer than any other kids til curry comes from getting her from hospital, getting her from the doctor or taking care of her at home.

My hasty love the children at her daycare so much that even off the clock, SHE would do everything he could for .

them once I was in a mental and getting a call from curry that AManda really sick. We have nobody here to watch the baby if he can come. He didn't know where I was. I said, sure, but i'm a mental can .

make IT over there.

I rushed back to watch the baby.

There's over a hundred miles between san haz and secreted to is at least a two hour drive, even when the traffic .

good is like two hours, twenty and half hours. IT is a long way. I remember one time I went and pick AManda from emergency in a hospital room. I would sleep in was twelve o clock at night. I was sleep.

I get a call, but I think the coding was cory and corey says my high AManda is in a hospital and baby sleep, I can leave the house. Can you go pick up AManda am, bring her phone course. I am sure I got out, put my clothes on, drove from my house to the hospital. He was, he was about twenty five minutes.

I went to her hospital and they said, when you go there, say you and this and so they let you into the emergency area I say, okay, so I went to the hospital and the nurse came and he says, yes I said, i'm here to pick up a and rally and they say, for you I saw, aren't they aunt and they say, okay, so they let me in and he showed me where the room is. I went to the room and she's sleeping in a dark, dark room on a bed. And SHE looked like he just woke up.

And I said, are you done? He says, and let me get closed on so SHE put her clothes on and I walked to the car. I grow for help. When I got to her host as if you need help to go up this, she's good. And SHE went up the same one inside that was IT.

Not only did mahadei love the children, SHE also became friends with her parents.

I went to church with a AManda. I can. They would go to church, a law coring.

AManda were regulars at the family community church in sanha, known as F, C. C. IT might sound like a small church in the suburbs, but it's actually a mega church.

Its average weekly attendance is in the thousands, as many families do. The riles would often head down for the sunday service, but IT wasn't just some days that AManda will attend. SHE was also heavily involved in the Young adults group called encounter.

Every tuesday night I go to encounter, which is our amazing Young adults church service. This week I wasn't feeling too well, but I went during worship my legs by and hurting so bad with shooting, burning nerve pains that I had to sit down. I've never SAT down doing worship, ever I love.

My name is Linda wilder. When I first met AManda, I was in aist walking into a Christian church for one of the first times. Honestly, in a weird way, I was kind of star struck.

When a mother would speak to the congregation, people would gravitate toward her. SHE had a presence.

something about her.

This is actual audio of a member speaking to the convergence. And Linda was in the audience.

Yeah, I see.

O thirty four, twenty success, I will make them. And in the places all around my hill of blessing, and I will cause showers to come down in their season, there shall be showers of blessing. Now I don't know about you guys, but it's sure raining in my life, but I don't know that I call the showers of lessing. I call IT the storm that I can see in the other.

I had known this person through my friend at the time, and all I had known of her is that he had been battling cancer for many years. Two little boys bubble, beautiful Young woman and active, beloved church number. We met at our Young adults group called encounter.

Encounter was for people between the ages of eighteen and thirty seven from all walks of life. IT was LED by pasta chase .

weekends. I was struggling .

at this time very badly, not knowing who are where to turn to. And my manager at the time, Amber sub, just did. I go to church with her multiple weeks in a row. And so I finally did. I went to church with her.

I was blown away by the huge production value, the flash and lights, the jumping up on the stage light, all easily fancy little things you wouldn't expect to see in a church you don't think of a discover. And in that I saw AManda respected and loved and being treated like the annointed person. They said he was and I wasn't all.

It's like an overwhelming love bomb. Like they want you to come back. You're a body, you're spreading the word.

So they just run up with this big hug. Welcome here. welcome. I felt like I had instant friends, I think most confusingly ly as I walked in there proudly, and if, as I said, i'm here to check IT out, but I don't believe god I never have, and I don't think I ever will. And I was still receiving love as if I was a Christian, just like that. And so in that moment I sort of thought, well, there's nothing I can really do wrong, and you'll love me.

What did ever tell you about?

And there I had already known all about ama. I had already ready known that there was a member of this, the name demand assy ri, who had cancer, was fighting hodges kington former and IT was terminal. IT is spread and metasomatic ed in her entire body. SHE had very little time to live to beautiful Young boys, just making IT seem very undeserving, very tragic for this to happen to such a Young woman with so many opportunities.

I have a .

visual SHE was wearing a beny because her hair was just starting to grow back. I also remember overhearing her saying that somebody was trying to talk to her about cancer. Somebody was saying that kind of hush behind her back, and her response was, if you have questions about my cancer, please just come to who Better to let you know what i'm experiencing than myself.

I respected that. I really did. I thought, you know, maybe I would be intimidate to approach someone with cancer.

But AManda, I could talk to, she's open about her experience. She's here, a live, bubbly, happy, praising the lord. Yet she's dealing with something so horrendous.

After I relax, the first time I found out that my medical insurance wasn't going to cover all of my balls anymore, basically because I was moving into the treatments, starts getting a little bit funny, and insurance doesn't touch quite so much additional scans of hospital stays in everything that I was um I had to stop working. We went from two full incomes to one income, an extra two kids and a sulu of medical bills. And we just found our thoughts massively. I got to the point where I was a kind of talking about IT and you're not praying about IT and what really sure what .

to do that was real audio of AManda sharing her testimony at a church again. SHE blocked about IT a few days later, posting pictures of her speaking on stage, and the many gift card SHE was donated afterwards.

Then this past week, I spoke encounter about Victories. It's truly a privilege and an honor to serve. I'm so painful for pastor chase in the leadership team. They are not friends. Their family paster cheese pushes us to stretch even when we don't want to, even if i'm not so comfortable, I feel like I am getting a web at Better at the public speaking thing. Though the .

outward generosity with tangible the gift SHE would receive, people would slip her boxes with self care items, gift cards, or go by your children. This you want to go to that concert, but you can afford IT. Please let me pay. Sometimes the offering in the church services would have a segment for AManda.

You're going to bring your money to the lord, and then you're going to bring your money to AManda, who is directly serving lord Amber and I, after every church service, would go out to one of our cars and pray for AManda. And the phrase was always for her to see her children graduate from high school, which was just IT was not gonna happen and he was terminal SHE. I had seen a picture of cancer having riddled her entire body, little spects through her entire body.

Show me the picture. He said, a man to told me not to show this to anybody, but sense we're here in this car praying together for her. I want to show you this picture.

And we cried, we cried. The cancer was everywhere, her arms, her legs, her chest. He really thought he was gna die.

I really thought maybe one day would wake up. And he had you died, I feel like he caught the attention of my heart immediately. I wanted to help like other people were helping. I don't have money to go, but I knew that one of the ways I could contribute was to donate playlets in her honor, knowing they weren't going to her, but they were going to someone struggling with, maybe hodges, an loma that needed these playlets to survive. And in that, we built a connection.

SHE never looks sick to me, never. SHE always had a good skin, good make up. SHE always look good. I so, oh, the only .

thing .

was different. He shaved all of that beautiful hair SHE shape IT the 味道。 But the point is he had her eyebrows SHE had her eyelashes SHE says SHE shaped IT because he didn't want her hair get to the point that look like a birdless. So cory shaved her here .

and cory want to .

shake his head to support AManda. Yeah, I remember that too.

My hair a has been progressively coming up for the past week. Finally, today, IT just became too much. Master clean up.

So we buzz what was left of my hair. My god sent of a husband. Let me save his head in solidarity, rocking his stupid cancer shirt.

There was a time when he had shaped her head because of what he was going through. So obviously, at that point, there's more of a physical sign that you know she's going through something if you know you don't have your hair. But in terms of her showing up and seeming sick, SHE usually had a pretty good energy level.

AManda was a bit of a rocks, or at church, everyone knew who he was and what he was going through her strength. Everything was inspiring ing, especially for Young woman called her family .

as we were part of um the same college group essentially at church. So once a week we would show up on I think that was tuesday nights of the time. We are the same community, same friend group and we just got to know each there.

A Manda was always incredibly sweep. SHE had a presence about her that was very likeable. SHE was there for me when I needed to chat, very supportive and friendly.

I never really had anything negative to say about her. Some of her conversations would be as simple as, you know, talking about my boy drama, her giving advice because he was married, and stuff like like that. I have a history with childcare and early childhood ducaine.

I would help out with babysitting, play with our kids. I would even did somehow sitting for her to carve her pets, our kids, you know, we, that was one of my things. You know, he has two Young boys.

And for her to be sick, you know that that must be so hard on them and they grow up. And if they were to lose her, what that look like? I think I just fell in such a purpose in being able to do that .

to feel like I was making .

a difference and being able to support her kind of make me feel special that I could do that for her and that I had the skill set to show up and be able to do that um in the time and that he will allow me into that area of her life and trust me with that IT was very special.

I felt .

trusted and loved. I was beautiful and lovely being around the Manda. IT was, I was like, light. You know, he had that personality that you were drawn to. So being able to be an inner circle, of course, was such a joy for me to be close to someone who makes you feel that way.

We did have many conversations over the years of just you know that that mental struggle of trying to baLance everything in being away from her family when he would need to get treatment ARM the financial burden. We talked about faith a lot in terms of the cancer, and you know trying to say strong and pray and have that support. In fact, I even visit her in the hospital few times.

That was hard, seeing her in a hospital room and at the time suffering. And I was definitely hard. But SHE had such a group around her that I was I didn't feel like he was alone in IT.

And I kind of gave me of a sense of comfort that, you know, he would get through IT and I would work out for the best one way or the other. IT wasn't a sit there and kind of score around the issue of, you know, you're sitting in a bed, there is wires black in that was, hey, let's talk about life house corry. How are .

the boys they preferred to.

to go on to one to half that time with her? I just reminded me of, you know, how afraid, strong he was to be going through something and still be thinking of other people. SHE was an inspiration to me.

Chemo and the cancer treatment .

SHE had gone through or having other side effects, and they couldn't pinpoint what was going on, but that he was an extreme pain. But that was something related to her back or bones. I don't remember the specifics.

I remember her being concerned that they couldn't figure that out. And so he was kind of in her own isolated room there was talking about her transfering to special units because they couldn't pinpoint what was causing her the pain. And so SHE explained, i'm helped up to this and it's it's doing this and they remember her being flared, the theyd work, sure, what was going on at that point time. And so that was very concerning to me. You've went through cancer a few times and now they can't figure out how to at this point.

Well, that was hearts .

ranching devastating. IT was so much back and forth at this point, you're healed, then you're back and then your healed and then you're back. And now what is the path forward? Her boys are getting older in she's having to be away from them in the hospital again, in adjust, broke my heart to to see them have to go through this and to think of what that financial burden must look like to have to be in the hospitals again. I couldn't even imagine putting myself in her shoes and what that was like for .

her moral support was in the only way the church community helped to.

under my incredible pastor notified me in our weekly, in our core leadership meeting, and he was setting up a prayer first day for a family. I confided in him that we needed specific prayer. Donations have drastically during in those. If I don't get the treatment, I won't see new.

I wouldn't say was .

obvious that he was sick at church. And one of the things we would say about AManda was how strong he was because SHE would share about her suffering, but he would show up and SHE would have a smile for you, and SHE would still be there for you. They had already built up that community around her with the pastor.

D announced ed day, you know, a man is struggling. If anyone wants to support her, like, let us know, at one point, they did risk fans. A lot of people at our church donated, you know, we had many fund raisers.

We had a large church, and people were very supportive. We would do a little events here and there. There was Christmas carling, and we would drop off gifts for her kids. And I think they were occasionally, you know, those restaurant things where, if you come in on this nights, some other portions go to this and things of that nature. There are t shirts at one point.

SHE would get on the stage at sermons and talk about her miracle, talk about how IT hurts so much to get up in the morning. Her body is burning. Her joints are staff. But the lord is there to Carry her throw.

We try to hide from god. We're angry with god. We try to hide from don't stop talking him if you're angry, telling if you're happy, praise him.

You know, if you're going through something, share IT with him. Give IT to him. Whatever IT is, when is happy or mad or angry or sad, don't ignore jesus because he is always there. You're unfortunate if you brought you your miracle and you are watching.

有没有， 我是。

I can tell you, almost everybody in that building was on the edge of their seat. We wanted to know what AManda had to say. We wanted to know where her strength was coming from, how he could continue to be so persevering in such a horrible situation, and how leaning on god and having god in her life was performing so many otherwise unexplainable miracles.

IT was profound. IT was absolutely profound. I remember one of the last things AManda said in her sermon was, you need to watch closely to jesus because your miracle could happen and you could not even know IT.

And that made the entire congregation go wild. IT was the most pointed thing ever. IT became trademark as hers. And I was just, I was eating IT up.

I was a believer.

I was baptized. And I believe, twenty sixteen, AManda's best friend, Amber.

was right by my side supporting .

a man who got me more involved in the community, which, you know, by defauts grew my face. Seeing all these miracles on her life made me feel like maybe mine was around the corner that I know, just give my life to go on. I went to a church service.

I was sitting next to Amber, and Amber was sitting next to AManda. During the service, I remember looking over and hearing a man to say, I don't feel well. I'm getting really hot. I need to go crop water.

Last night I was at the incredible tuesday night encounter at fcc church. I got a bit dishy, but pastorate was on a roll and I didn't want to. In the rub, the incredible moment he was forming.

SHE passed by us. SHE started to walk down the eye. He walked all the way to the back of the church.

Finally, I got to the point, I didn't have a choice, and I knew I needed some water asp.

And now he was turning the corner to go towards the door. SHE passed out, just flat, passed out. I remember exactly what happened done.

The pastor jumped off the stage, and he ran over to her. Everybody got up. They made almost a huddle where they put all of their hands in. The idea was that everybody holding their hands of AManda was putting some sort of intention on her, that the lord would heal her, that he would raise up from the ground and be OK, that he would survive.

Next thing I remember, I hear people yelling, AManda, AManda.

come line on line. They were praying for her, praying over her. And that's when I, for the first time in my life, got down on my knees, and I prayed for AManda, prayed that he would see her children graduate high school.

And SHE left in the ambuLance.

Memories came a picture up that night, and the next day on facebook you'd like, posted something like, ha, ha, ha, yeah, I was me. I was the girl that I passed out. And I thought that was a little bit like, odd, you know, like him.

This is another of AManda's friends from the youth group encounter at church vana reis.

I had a near death experience, and I prayed him my hospital, but and key, give me a chance of life. And that's how I decided to give my life to gotten. I found the Younger dots group and decide to walk with my really ship about with him so that I met amand because I share my testiment on stage and SHE.

I love you.

Your great.

I think .

you're great.

I chase asked all of us in the group to doni. SHE reached out to him personally saying, hey, like, I can afford this, I hate to ask, but can you just pray for us? And that chases hard traces.

Hard was very like, i'm gonna ach out to leaders like kidding. Like go on stage to make a big go announced for huws like, and reach out to leaders who would do something about this. So a lot of us did donate money. We all gave IT to him and he gave to hurt.

A huge thank you to pass your chase and all of encounter leadership who raised all the money for my tests and my treatments so I could start the medicine. I don't know what I would do without your prayers and love.

because your chase called us personally that is a voice smell. And I just heard as hard, you know, that were brother and sisters of crist to be there for one another to help burrow like she's kind of embarrass to ask. He needed A S, I gave one hundred, so I gave him to chase at the church.

At here he was by envelope. He gave a demand, and he was like, okay, thank you so much. SHE was a big member of the church he really was given before I got there. There were pictures of her minds program that SHE, you know how to on stage and earn her husband. And people will come up and give them money.

AManda was on stage at church again, speaking again, this time with her husband core joining her. Her local celebrity status was growing. Church goes flocked to the stage and put money at her feet.

Pastor, he approached me the first time. I have kind of talked about my story a little bit and said, hey, you know, we want to do a dollar offering for you on main stage. I said you wanted do a one. And he said that they were talking about giving and teaching people how to give, and that he wanted us to be the recipient for that. And in front of our entire main stage, turn to people came up and put dollars on the stage, thousands of dollars on the stage, and completely White .

dramatical bls.

I was there. The family stood on stage. I remember all the different lights. The spot lights were on them, but there were also like the twinkling, like Green, blue, red. IT was just really .

sensationalize was on the stage.

I believe IT was the whole family. I believe IT was AManda and cory and the kids. I mean, just by being on a stage, he was on a petito.

I've remember the music playing softly. People were slowly walking up with their money. They weren't running towards.

They were paying their deals. They were throwing out feet. They were throwing money, dollar bills, whatever, to be collected and go directly into our pocket.

These people needed money. We needed to make sure this mom can see our kids graduate whatever we had to do. So her medications were four thousand dollars month.

okay? So let's support her. Let's throw money at her feet. This twenty dollars in my pocket is worth so little and compares to the life of this woman. I was an observer from like the first few rows when I physically gave her money, as when they were passing around like a tiger trade and offering trade, and I put money in there, I would hang on her money as they were coming around collecting. For that day, AManda friend .

AManda was literally having money thrown at her feet. And if he continued to preach to her congregation in person and to her followers online, Nancy, the investigative producer, was going deeply down the rabbit hole .

of AManda's blogs. Everyday I come into work, I had IT saved on my, my computer, you know, bookmark. I would check your blog.

I would check her facebook. I would check your instagram, just to C. K.

Where are we at today? What's new? Each week there was two or three more posts, and I just found myself in thrawl.

SHE posted probably at least once a week, if not twice. And if SHE wasn't posting on there, there was an instagram or a facebook to look for, or even twitter. Every seem to be sunday night, wednesday and friday, you know, or there about SHE .

would post. Would you say that you became almost kind of addicted to in, not in head as I asked you that it's .

gonna ound strange. But I was really exciting. I would say, yes, yeah, I think part of IT, because it's in my job, it's exciting to latch onto a story and worked the story. And part of that is is going down those tent and those rabid holes, as I always a say, and and getting sucked in because you do your best work when you're in middle of IT. It's hard to do IT from just looking from the outside.

I knew something wasn't right, right? So of course, on the reason i'm reading them is because if I believe my source, this woman is lying and doesn't have cancer, but in the same breath i'm reading these to look for the details and the stuff that I can pull out from IT. So, you know, I was hanging on every word and wanting to this excitement. If you would post something that I thought I could fact check, was I H I could check that out or, oh, he said this, he said this last time. So ah IT becomes very like a puzzle and very all consuming.

I ask Nancy to read the email SHE got from her source to get a Better understanding of what was pushing her to really go after this story.

This is the email I got. Hi Nancy. I'm contacting you because I believe that I have a story that you might be interested in checking out.

There is a thirty year old woman in my silicon valley city. IT was claiming to have staged for blood cancer. SHE has moved to herself into a volunteer leadership position in one of the largest churches in our area.

SHE has been using the deeply religious and affluent congregation to get nonstop donations and benefits for the past three years. SHE was new to the church when her cancer began. She's charming everyone with her sweetness and flatter and getting everything he asked for.

SHE has celebrities tweet to her donating signed guitar's for raffles radio stations tweet to her SHE has been interviewed by online lifestyle sites, is a VIP at hockey games, baseball games and football games. SHE gets to meet the players, gets free meals and free days at hotels in the safran, cisco, new york and montori area. The list goes on and on.

Her position at the church allows her to meet lots of Young professionals with connections in our fluent city. SHE has had people paying for her multiple trips to new york for treatment, including broadway shows where he gets back, stage passes and meets the stars, and he does this all after a long day of treatment in a hospital. She's constantly asking for more money and thinking her donors by name.

The support has been encouraging. Over and wonderful are invited to be V I P. guests. thanks. Thank you to everyone who has donated.

Thank you to everyone to all of encounter the Fisher, everyone involved or charis on. s. how? do.

Even from every a huge thank you to the sand, my parents and brother, who in my huge thank you to two amazing church families to happy little for dies and former lessons, thank you to every person who donated much food, a lot help free school costs get Better. Thank you. cancer.

I appreciate you. I watched the case and just for giving your attention. Thank you for making our family feel so loved less, no matter what the outcome. I already one.

already AMandas many.

Thank you to the hundreds of donors, the anonymous email that Nancy got continues with.

This woman is married, and I strongly believe her husband is in on IT. SHE is very charming and has an adorable family, which is why I believe most people are afraid to question her. My concern is that this woman and her husband could potentially be dangerous if exposed, and I am worried for my safety and that of my family if I were to be identified.

Nancy source insisted on anonymity despite pages and pages of public heartfelt blog post that inspired a mood thousands of followers. One anonymous email was enough to get Nancy questioning the whole thing. AManda was even catching the attention of celebrities who were throwing their support behind the hashtag team and under cause, facilitated by new friend and celebrity hook ku s. Stephanie fin, who was in the nasty ilm music scene.

I knew her mom, Peggy, and her dad, tom. So you were kind of in the same circle. Friends, well, did like fani foobar. We hang out together on on weekends. I do remember Peggy talking all of the milk if you heard about, you know, a Manda.

It's like, no, here's her daughter SHE has been diagnosed some something that's awful Peggy SHE was posting here's her kiser bill in parts of its covered up. This is how much IT is that was for insurance. And they were saying they were gna pay for certain things.

And there were certain treatments as SHE supposedly needed that wasn't covered under poser network. I've just always been won if I can help out or help out. So I had reached out at one point, was like, k, you know, look, here's some ideas of some ways we can raise money.

Why don't we do auction items and I can try to get my hands on some items. SHE just wanted anything you could do that to, you know, raise awareness. awesome.

And let me help you out. What can we do to drive up the kids? What can we do? Just get awareness itself.

Stephanie, the most kind hearted person ever, has started up an awesome support system called a anda brave hashtag team, AManda, using her amazing connections to get performers from all over to sign guitars for auction to help support team. AManda just .

started reaching out to people that I knew or within country music. And there are connections within country music and going, getting stuff signed. One of them was to go see tower power and journey, and they were able to get a guitar sign for.

AManda was like, OK, and I need to have something I can give them to. Her mom created a fire that I could actually give the artist to tell me why we're trying to raise money. So that way, if I was like a friend of a friend, you know, they would have something to hand off and say, here you go. AManda SHE would asked to have a flyer side and we may, under her, given to her mom or send der a picture of IT.

Stephanie was extremely well connected in the country music business. Jackie, newly on rimes, a steel player he contacted about getting a man of back stage to meet lean .

I to offered once, if you go, I go to concert, you can go with me. I saw the arrests is my favorite. I had plans to go. So SHE wanted to go. Or how does he wanted to go?

The steel player that I knew I was living still player at the time is like, I can make sure and you guys get a chance to meter. We went back stage for me grades. So of course, all these things are on social media.

Now lean ryans has joined team AManda. Stephanie surprised me by taking both korean I to the concert. We got to meet her.

I was pretty star struck, but tried to keep my cool. SHE was so nice and down to earth. Afterwards, we got to watch her perform with the IT was the beautiful and pure magic. I think my jaw was on the floor most of the night after the concert, her wonderful steal player escorted us to her dressing room where .

SHE so kindly signed guitars .

was land's reaction.

of course, very sympathetic. I mean, you have someone coming and saying, you know, they have cancer and they are so excited to meet them in. I mean, SHE was very.

very, very, very polite.

I ever heard of how the X Y was crazy. The X Y was crazy. She's a terrible mom. We've got to get away from there. We're onna get full custody.

Yep, the custody battle was still happening and IT wasn't particularly pretty. And whether IT was through facebook, on the phone or in person, AManda wasn't shy about sharing SHE was painting a picture to all of her friends of what a litter the x wife was like and exactly why he needed to get just out of a liter's house. When we SAT down with jess ter and her mom litter, I wanted to know what AManda was saying in court.

They would say things .

that weren't .

true according to them. I was a druggy. I was abusive to .

my daughter.

Ala, just as mom again.

they're just trying to get custody.

They kept trying to get custody, ever.

I'm Jenny winter, and I was a latest tourney in her family law matter.

Jenny, how long have you be in practice in family law?

Um over twenty years I can .

imagine you've seen so many different types of cases.

Yeah nothing like this one though really .

what made you so different?

I ve never dealt with opposing parties that would go to the link that mr. Ri, and his wife AManda went to, I mean, I was blown away.

What was some of the things that AManda and cory would accusing .

a leader of? Well, they did try to accuse her of being crazy and would claim that he did certain things that if he had, that would make her seem crazy. I remember one in particular, which was not necessarily the worst, but accusing her of coming over the course house and doing wheels in her car, one of the south, that just really kind of crazy stuff, which he didn't do.

You go into court and you're trying to claim that the other person is, you know, not stable and you say, well, you know, here's this thirty something mother of of three neighborhood driving in wild Willy circles and screaming and yelling and doing IT makes them seem unstable. Even if you did do that, what's that got to do with her parenting her daughter? Other than that, you would hope you would not take her daughter to do those kinds of things.

But they were trying to make her seem unstable. There was so much. There was so much. And of course, they always accuse her of trying to turn their daughter against her father. They just wanted to get, if they could get the child away from her, they could eliminate the child's support, and in fact, go after heard for child support. I think money was a lot at the bottom of this.

They just really try to tell me apart. And at one point they did. IT was just awful, and I had no control. IT was heart breaking.

Why do you think they wanted your daughter?

I was in the way of their perfect little family.

When you go to court, the judge SHE doesn't know the people, so SHE may know these parents because they have made frequent appearances that he doesn't really know them, and so SHE can't really determine what is actually going on. And in this case, I think that cory, he's pretty good at putting a good front on. He can seem really noble.

And allied was having great difficulty with entire thing. And at a time when is her a journey? I needed her to be iraq. You know, some client just can't do IT because IT gets too emotional. And then the judge start tearing the other side, saying how unstable SHE is and the next thing you know here, fighting an appeal battle.

And so even if the judge considered everything that we said, along with everything the other side said, and IT looks as though there's a little more truth to the average story because the leader is being really emotional in court or whatever. So a little lost custody. And I want you to know, I cried in court that day, and I had never allowed my emotion to show when representing someone in court before that. Or seems that I could help myself because I knew that going to live with her father was not what was best for jeff. I do IT .

gesa is living with us full .

time now. And IT has been such a blessing. She's doing so great that makes my heart happy.

The judges at the time, he was just, oh.

because he was awful.

he was just awful. But anyways, they told me I had to turn just in like a dog. I had to turn her in. Are you serious? So I had to go to the court that day, and I went with my parents.

Sorry.

so .

OK.

A little to understandably.

ly found this very distressing. I myself come from a split family, and I know how hard I was for me as a child. We pause the tape to let a little to have some space, and I started recording a again when gesa. Why do you think I, underwood, ted, you has her daughter?

I think AManda has always wanted that image of a perfect family and would do anything to get IT. I think that he wanted me to play a part now. And just kind of forget where I came from and just focus on .

her and my dad makes .

me feel really sad because almost just want to kind of forget a everything happen. But then I see the pictures of my little brothers that makes me kind of miss what I had with them. When I lived with my dad, I just kind of had to follow everything they did, and I had to be perfect else.

I wouldn't be able to have my phone to ground IT. I wouldn't able to have my door, my bedroom like that. I would be a lot if I got trouble.

Shortly after just I got taken away, I was watching TV and I saw just a on T V with her dad because somebody stole gross scot cookies and they were on the news. And I can see justa IT was the first day of her school since he got taken weight in a new school. And SHE was on the new station, and SHE just looked like he had been crying all night long. That was torture all in itself. I just wanted to just go hunger, and I could not even do that.

Could you contact her at that time?

I think we had a phone conversation like a couple times a week. I was ridiculous. I don't remember exactly how many times. And of course, they would sit there and they would be there at ever conversation. So I couldn't really even talk to SHE couldn't really talk to .

me what was just a like when you spoke to her. I was very .

superficial because, you know, SHE didn't wanted get in trouble for saying something that SHE shouldn't and I knew they were listening so I could not ask her anything without worrying about getting hung g. Up on.

IT was very rare that I was able to talk to her, my mom, like, at all, and remember going most of the time without being able talk to her like period. And when I did talk to her, I couldn't .

speak alone. My dad, AManda.

would mention things that I wasn't allowed to say. They would monitor the phone call very closely as time went on. They would allow me to take a phone call in my room, but I couldn't have the door close. They closed by and they were just very overbearing.

What things were not allowed .

to say just anything about what was happening with AManda and her sickness or any plans that we had. I was not really allowed to speak about that.

What did you think of AManda at that time? I knew I didn't really .

like that much because you'd kind of take a new way for my mom.

I remember one time he dropped out justice and SHE had this pink being on. I felt bad for, you know and SHE was all bubbly.

just was explaining .

how SHE shaved her head and try to show her her hair missing justice said he was like, launch land league. Oh.

you want to see king up from school monday and SHE had had just a been on like, usually your hair would be like going to her being here you show through the back but SHE told me he was like, my hair was started fallowing out. And so I saved that. You want to see that vote? I didn't think he would be so like open with IT. I thought I would be like a source subject. I thought i'd be hard for her, but so SHE ripped off her bin and he showed me her bald head.

And what was your action?

I remember just kind of being in shock.

Were you there when he passed out at the church?

No.

but I remember when my dad got the call.

What would have been?

I just remember someone from the church called my dad. He's like AManda just passed out at church and but I have to go get her and you start to go to hospital and like OK OK .

yt SHE p on the floor.

SHE did with .

jon now living .

with them full time. Among his perfect family was finally complete, but IT wasn't a happily ever after he took to her blog posting photos of the daily injection SHE needed and the oxygen tubes that was slowly becoming a permanent fixture. Our cancer was getting worse.

Well, long story short, i'm not converting enough oxygen out of my body had an efficient rate. I'm working with a plummet specialist team. They're doing everything they can to Better the situation.

Until then, i'm the living version of faulkner stars. Can I just say anyone who is on oxygen, I feel you hauling tanks everywhere are dealing with insurance delivery the tubes, extra weight. It's a pain in the ass.

Currently fighting insurance, they claim oxygen. Necessity isn't covered. I cobia.

There is always photos, there is always more details. SHE had pictures of hospital equipment, you know, her standing in front of IT or or lying in a bed with equipment. I just kept building and building upon the original research with every post, because IT is just .

have going .

IT was this back and forth constantly, because the way he writes and the journey SHE takes you, one loves you into this. Oh, this is horrible. And I had gone through this with my my sister was diagnosed in past away from ln.

Cancer, and he was a little bit older than what AManda was. Had two small kids. IT was very, very similar. And I know what that was like, and I know what that look like. And this resembled IT to a point, and then didn't, and then did.

and then didn't.

AManda was getting worse, but looking healthier, and that stuck with me a lot. I could have gone well. He looks like SHE hooked up to machines and she's in a doctor's office that says oncology, but doesn't SHE look like he gained weight, you know and there's so much that you think of with with people that are are fighting for their life with cancer that just warn adding up.

When I was watching my little brothers, they told me to clean their playroom. So I, I cleaned ed up their playroom, and as I was cleaning, I found an iv raft and surrender. Remember, is being confused. IT was just like the .

the like plastic part.

And then like a little bit of the two that .

goes into a hand, how did you know what I was?

I've had I V S myself, so I knew what they look like.

but they are. So after .

I found the A I V, I brought IT to AManda and I told her, i'm like, what is this? Why isn't in my little bill's room like? And SHE just kind of grabbed IT from me.

And told me that, oh, Carter, my lb. Brother, he was just going to my jaws. And he found that, so just keeping out of my doors from my OK.

right? fine. So I found that a little bit odd. As soon as I was able to have vision with my mom, I kind of mentioned, and i'm like, things are just seeming really weird.

geta was starting to feel uncomfortable, confused, shouted a lot of responsibility, ie. s.

For a thirteen year old.

Hopefully, though, things were about to change for gesa and the entire Riley family, having beaten cancer twice already, a panda was nothing, if not a fighter, despite relation once more, and then being diagnosed at stage four, she's done IT again. SHE updated her blog with pictures of her family, including gesa, and the news that he had achieved complete remission.

This was the best week ever I went in to check my cancer prognosis to get scheduled from my harvest, only to find out that I have achieved complete remission. How to team member?

Commander is hosted and produced by me, charlie webster, and produced by Jackson the clan AManda's blog posts are read by actor kendall orn edit and theme music by nico pola assistant producer casey hurts, assistant editor seem a grey wall additional production support from Stephen slater, will he go and a .

call urban an executive .

produced by me, charlie webster and Nancy moscato o commander is online es gates down production engineered by pilGreen media group.