A couple of updates worth noting:

Stody Update
I hear that Sean is feeling a little better today. He's had an on-again, off-again fever that they suspect is due to an infection of an undetermined location he must be fighting. Unless something has changed, he's due back to Kaiser tomorrow for a full-body CT scan to try to locate the source of infection. Once they get that under control, then he can begin to think about which course of therapy he wants to take. Until then, he can't begin radiation or chemo unless his immune system is strong enough to tolerate it. :(

But, Team Stody is in full effect and I understand from my Dad that they've contacted several specialists nationwide and have begun a dialogue with a few. I imagine he and Mel are feeling overwhelmed (to say the least!) and a bit daunted at the task at hand, but I also know they really appreciate all the help everyone's putting in. As of right now, I know Mike is headed out on Tuesday, so back-up reinforcement is on its way!

Dive Tournament Update
Details on the tournament can now be found on the "Roi Round-up" page. Please click on the link to download the PDF which contains more information, the entry application and release form. Again, many, many thanks to the folks at Hard Rock Cafe, Darrell Tanaka, Kuhea Paracuelles and Brian Yoshikawa for all their hard work making this event a reality. We truly appreciate it!



Update from the Reef
This isn't any ordinary update, this one has a porpoise! The underwater community has been on edge since the announcement of the Invasive Species tournament on Nov. 9th. Rois, Taape and Toaus everywhere are shaking in their gills. It has been almost one month since Stody became land-locked and frankly, some elusive Uluas and Kagamis are smugly happy about it!

Dive Smart, Dive Safe everybody!

~ melissa

Aloha all yee Stody followers!

This is an official "Save the Date" for an Invasive Species Dive Tournament to benefit the Stodelle ohana. Details and logistics are still being finalized, so I will update the site as information becomes available.

Date:  Sunday, November 9, 2008

What: Invasive Species Dive Tourney to benefit Sean Stodelle
Hosted by: Hard Rock Cafe, Lahaina

Event details for DIVERS:
- All divers wishing to participate must pick up an application at Maui Sporting Goods (Note: Applications should be available by the first part of next week). I believe we are also working on getting these PDF'd; if so, I can attach it on the website for download.
- Eligible fish are Roi, Taape, and Toau.
- Entries will be limited to the first 30 2-man teams. Further details will be provided on application when it's ready.

**Thank you to Darrell Tanaka, Brian Yoshikawa, and Kuhea Paracuelles for putting this event together and for supplying the details above. And a special thanks to Hard Rock Cafe for providing the forum to make this all happen. Many, many mahalos!**

Event details for ATTENDEES:
- Tourney is being hosted by Hard Rock Cafe and will feature a live band. I'm assuming the after party venue will be held at Hard Rock on Front St. in Lahaina; will confirm those details.
- Please let me know if you are interested in volunteering at this event or if you would like to donate.
- Everyone is welcome! Hope to see you there!

Just more proof that you can't keep a good man down: Sean has been sighted this week at a few of his old stomping grounds: lunching and visting the old crew at Seascape Restaurant at the Maui Ocean Center and the clubhouse at Maui Lani, chatting on the diveboard at HSD, and going "incognito" under a new camo fleece blanket from the mainland Stodelle clan. Sean is becoming a regular rockstar, complete with paparazzi! (check out some recent photos on the "About Stody" page)

But truly, from self-reports and confirmation from Mel, Jordyn and my Dad, Sean is doing awesome. It seems there's a small bet being waged on who can take more naps - my Dad or Sean! (Dad's the current record-holder) I'm glad he's resting up, as tomorrow is a big day. Tomorrow they meet with Dr. Coty, an oncologist at Kaiser. I'm sure Sean is anxious to devise a gameplan and get things underway; he's never been one for sitting on the sidelines. I'll try to keep everyone posted as soon as I can on what I can glean from their meeting.

Thanks again for everyone's continued care and concern. Your support and encouragement is a huge testament to just how many lives Sean has touched. I know he personally believes and employs the "Pay it forward" mentality (basically, when you give of yourself and put it out there for others, it moves down the line, sometimes even around the globe), but I don't think he was quite prepared to be on the receiving end just yet! Part of all of this is to get Sean comfortable with the idea that there are many, many people that want to help, and it's his turn to recapture some of that good energy that he's doled out to so many others. And like Sean's pointed out, "It's not about the hand you're dealt, it's how you play the game." I'd say you're winning, Sean.

It's hard to believe that it has been 2 weeks since Sean became violently ill, suffering from excruciating headaches, pernicious vomiting, blurred vision, and slurred speech. It was Tuesday, September 23rd that I got the call from Melany telling me she'd rushed Sean to the ER and they were performing a CT scan. She said they "believed he had a mass in his brain..." Those words resonated over and over in my head, as I'm sure they must have for everyone else.

To bring everyone who may have missed the play-by-play up to speed, Sean was Medi-vac'd from Maui Memorial to Kaiser Moanalua on Oahu. There he was admitted to the Critical Care Unit and it was determined (after further MRI's) that Sean either had a brain tumor or perhaps an abscess in his brain, they couldn't determine which. Surgery to remove the mass and biopsy would be necessary, but not for at least 5 days due to the pronounced swelling (edema) that was causing further vision problems, hallucinations, and seizures. He was put on anti-seizure/anti-convulsants, pain meds, steroids and diuretics to reduce the swelling. Surgery was slated for Tuesday, September 30th. Now all we had to do was wait.

Easy for us to say, as we were free to come and go as we pleased! Poor Sean had to endure a week of waiting, all the while being debriefed with every worst-case scenario you can think of! He took it all in stride as only Sean can do, never losing his quick-witted sense of humor or graciousness to the CCU staff, surgeons, his family and friends.

After what seemed like an eternity, the day had finally come. Sean was prepped the day before and day of for brain surgery. He was in a good mood, surprisingly upbeat yet anxious to get things underway. When his neurosurgeon, Dr. Donovan, asked if he had anything he wanted to say before he went under, he responded with, "I won't say 'good luck' because that would imply you don't know what you're doing. So I guess I'll just say 'steady hands' instead." The surgeon agreed that was pretty darn sagely advice.

Everyone involved in his surgery and subsequent care went above and beyond, being very communicative to Mel and the rest of the family, which was extremely appreciated given how many hours elapsed while he was in surgery. Our hearts all sank when we were told that they were moving forward with a full right temporal lobectomy, which is the procedure they'd forewarned us they'd perform if it was a tumor with the likelihood of it being cancer. Sean pulled through with flying colors, and it was a huge relief that he was super cognizant of the date, time, his whereabouts and what had transpired immediately after being brought to after coming out of almost 7 hours of surgery. It felt like a huge burden had collectively been lifted and we were so thankful and relieved that Sean was the same ol' Sean, already cracking jokes and poking fun at his appearance.

The next day was pretty rough - it was painful seeing all the tubes coming out of Sean and we all know how much he loathes being drugged. Dr. Donovan came in and met with us and briefly with Sean. He wouldn't know definitively about the tumor until the pathology report came back, but in the meantime it was identified as a "glioma" and it was important that Sean rest.

Well, like everything else in Sean's life, he began recovering at light-speed. By the second day the tubes were out, then on Thursday 10/2 he was getting out of bed and sitting in a chair, then by Friday 10/3 he was eating bacon and eggs and his bandages were upgraded from their former turban-style to a beanie...

All was going good until Saturday, when we all felt like we got kicked in the stomach as the results of the pathology report came in. Although we knew it was a glioma, we were still uncertain of what stage of its malignancy it was and were hoping for a good prognosis. The path report diagnosed it as a "glioblastoma multiforme, Stage IV," an aggressive form of brain cancer. I will never forget that moment, hearing that.

Needless to say, Saturday was a rough day for everyone, but especially Sean and Melany. Jordy was shopping with her Grandma Cindy, which was good because it gave time for Sean and Mel to digest the news and mentally prep for the fight for Sean's life that was already underway. Sunday she got to visit Daddy in the hospital before she returned home to Maui with her Grandma and Grandpa. I understand that Sean had a sweet-tooth so everyone happily indulged by bringing him See's candies, Choco-Taco's and anything else Mel could find in the cafeteria! I say give the man anything he wants! (Ok, but no beer until you're home!)

I understand from the troops still on the ground (that would be Melany, Mike and Isolde) that Sean's staples were removed today and he has been officially discharged, exactly 2 weeks later. It has been a long and life-changing past couple of weeks. A lot of tears have been shed, but there's also been a LOT of laughter. It reminds me of an often used saying in Hawaii, and one that my Mom personally subscribed to:

"If there's no rain, then there's no rainbows", or, in short, "No rain, no rainbows."

To me, that kind of summarizes Sean's life and the journey he's embarking on thus far. Therefore and with that said, I'm pleased to invite you to this website for Sean, which will hopefully be both a ray of sunshine and offer a little shelter from the storm, whichever and whenever he may need it. 

Signing off with all my love to Sean, Melany and Jordyn.
~ Melissa