Mary Runion Ministries

03/01/2025

Hey everyone!
We have 2 surgeries in the books.
Joe had his Retina surgery Wednesday (2/26). According to Dr. Shah, it was difficult with a lot of scar tissue around his retina which was tangled up in a crumpled ball. They did inject the oil bubble so we are working with that particular procedure's at-home care instructions. Dr. Shah feels surgery was a success and, over time, will heal. He goes back for a follow up on March 14 at the Muncie office. The biggest difficulty with his current recovery instructions is staying on his stomach with his head/face down to keep the pressure off of his retina for 5 full days. He has a lot of trouble getting comfortable and sleeping. He is grateful for all the prayers and everyone coming around our family to support us. Joe is still scheduled to be off work for at least another month but they will only extend his FMLA/short-term disability for 30 days at a time.
Mary had her follow up with her family doctor & her gynecologist on Monday (2/24). The surgery was extra complicated. There was a lot off scar tissue, abrasions, lesions, and Dr. Thimmisch also identified polyps. Her cervix had what they are calling "pre-cancerous" cells and noted a few concerns with her bladder which prompted the referral to urology. With the hysterectomy though, they feel she is clear of a cervical-cancer diagnosis. However, her iron is also still under 100 so they scheduled a transfusion and are recommending a consult with G.I. (gastroenterology) specialist.
Today (2/28) Mary saw the urologist, Dr. Brinkman, who did a scope of her bladder and found a tumor. He felt that the tumor is small enough to wait a little bit to schedule a sedated biopsy and set the date for June 6th (after FWCS lets out of school). Mary also had an iron infusion and the hematologist (part of oncology) agrees with the GI referral recommendation.
Mary is scheduled to go back to South Side High School for the remainder of the school year to teach Biology. She is excited to have another opportunity to teach before the school year ends! It is definitely a welcome break from all the medical appointments and a huge financial blessing to be able to bring home a paycheck while Joe is not able to work.
Please continue to pray with us during the next few months that God would continue to heal our family. The kids are doing amazing at helping. Pray for them as they are carrying so much more than what they should be for their age and doing it to the best of their ability with God's help. Pray also for us as we manage all the schedules, driving, and keeping up on day-to-day chores and responsibilities (one of the hardest parts of going through traumatic experiences). They are also on the last 3 months of their senior year of school working as hard as they can to graduate in June and get their driver's licenses to be Hey everyone!
We have 2 surgeries in the books.
Joe had his Retina surgery. According to Dr. Shah, it was difficult with a lot of scar tissue and his retina tangled up in a crumpled ball. They did inject the oil bubble so we are working with that particular procedure's at-home care instructions. Dr. Shah feels surgery was a success and, over time, will heal. He goes back for a follow up on March 14 at the Muncie office. The biggest difficulty with his current recovery instructions is staying on his stomach with his head/face down to keep the pressure off of his retina. He is also having a lot of trouble getting comfortable and sleeping. He is grateful for all the prayers and everyone coming around our family to support us. Joe is still scheduled to be off work for at least another month but they will only extend his FMLA/short-term disability for 30 days at a time.
Mary had her follow up with her family doctor & her gynecologist on Monday (2/24). The surgery was extra complicated. There was a lot off scar tissue abrasions and lesions. Her cervix had what they are calling "pre-cancerous" cells and a few concerns with her bladder which prompted the referral to urology. With the hysterectomy though, they feel she is clear of a cervical-cancer diagnosis. However, her iron is also still under 100 so they scheduled a transfusion and are recommending a consult with G.I. (gastroenterology) specialist.
Today (2/28) Mary saw the urologist, Dr. Brinkman, who did a scope of her bladder and found a tumor. He felt that the tumor is small enough to wait a little bit to schedule a sedated biopsy and set the date for June 6th (after FWCS lets out of school). She is scheduled to go back to South Side High School for the remainder of the school year to teach Biology which she is excited to have another opportunity to teach before summer begins!!
Thank you for continued prayers, love and support.
With so much love and gratitude,
The Runion Family
*IF you have have ready this far and feel led to help the Runion family, here are the ways you can support them. God bless you!
MEAL TRAIN: https://www.mealtrain.com/trains/r9r577/
CashAPP: $MaryRunionMinistries
ZELLE: [email protected]
Paypal:

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02/22/2025

Brief update:

Mary is doing better. She is still dealing with some pain (which is to be expected), however, she is doing better and better each day. She has follow up appointments with her family doctor and her GYN/Surgeon on Monday to get further instructions on "what next".

Joe is having his next eye surgery in Indianapolis (Carmel) on the 26th. We will have to drive down early on Wednesday for the surgery and get a hotel room to be back in the office Thursday for a follow up appointment. We are trusting God and praying for all the resources needed to be able to do this with short notice as well as praying that this will make a bigger impact on Joe's ability to see. Joe HAS been approved for short term disability through his job but that doesn't begin until after March 1st (2 weeks from first day missed).

We did make some updates to the meal train (THANK YOU SO MUCH First Assembly Fort Wayne) so if you feel led to donate a meal or support financially, you may do so here:
MEAL TRAIN: https://www.mealtrain.com/trains/r9r577/
CashAPP: $MaryRunionMinistries
ZELLE: [email protected]
PayPal:

Mary is having major surgery (full hysterectomy) on Feb. 11th. She will be unable to do many things for at least 2 weeks and full recovery is about 6 weeks. Joe is also going through a series of eye surgeries which will limit how much he can help. We are doing as much as we can as a family to all pi...

10/14/2024

Superhero weekend at Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
We had lots of fun on Friday.
Took the weekend to unplug at Lake Placid. Now I'm playing catch up to get stuff done and 3 appointments. Yup. It's Monday.

09/14/2024

Seasons change 4 times every year and yet someone is always surprised when they do. LOL Fall is only 1 week away!!!

Joe's surgery was successful and they cleaned the transplanted artery as well as the shunts in his right leg. He is now on blood thinners so that he doesn't form a clot. However, he is at risk for bleeding so he has to rest as we watch him for any signs of hemorrhaging. He should be back up and moving again tonight after restrictions are lifted.

Today, a new season in our life began! THE PUBLISHING SEASON!
We put down our deposit to work with TMM Publishing and are beginning our journey! I am so excited with what God is doing and can't wait to see the fruit of the past 9 years come to maturity!
**Any funds donated to our ministry during the next 6 months will be directly sown into the production of this book.**
We are currently at $300 of $5500 and paying as we go. Please prayerfully consider supporting us, even with just a one-time gift towards this project.
You can give here:
CashAPP: $MaryRunionMinistries
ZELLE: [email protected]
Paypal:

09/08/2024

Runion Recap for this week:
I had a few people ask if I would post on Facebook about what was going on this week. So, here it is.
This week we are fasting and praying over multiple major events happening this week.
* The twins are in classes M-F, 8am - 10am at Anthis and online the rest of the time.
* Beginning Monday, I am on long-term assignment as the French teacher at South Side High School indefinitely.
* Monday after School, I have a follow up appointment with my Gynecology specialist for an Ultrasound and CT scan to determine if that is the cause of hemorrhaging which is causing severe anemia.
* Friday, I begin working with TMM Publishing (Timothy & Madai McCain) to begin publishing my second book. We are currently at $100 in our $500 goal. We need $500 to begin the process but we feel God has said "It's time to go." So by faith, we are scheduled to begin working with them on Friday and have an onboarding meeting scheduled for Saturday.
* Friday, Joe goes in to Cardiology for an angiogram, a surgical procedure to look at the artery in his right leg. This will be his 3rd time doing this procedure and we are praying for everything to go smoothly. There are a lot of complications to having diabetes including decreased blood flow and having had his toes amputated on that foot. Joe's father will be with him that day so I could still teach (since he will be off work without pay). We are thankful for the ladies who are collaborating to bring dinner for our family that night with so much going on!

Thank you so much for your prayers, love and support!

If you feel led to give towards the book publishing before this Friday, our giving avenues are posted below. (Our Goal for Friday is $500 and the total goal for the whole project is $5,500.)
CashAPP: $MaryRunionMinistries
ZELLE: [email protected]
Paypal:

*Pic from Mother's day 2024*

08/14/2024

*UPDATE*
I have been holding off on posting about my health for a while because I didn't have a whole lot to post. We have a lot of questions but not a lot of answers.
Today, we got one answer that brought up a few more questions in its place.
I am severely anemic. (Iron levels are supposed to be well over 100 and I have 11.) This brings the questions, "why am I anemic?" and, "is there hemorrhaging somewhere causing anemia?"
I am currently seeing multiple specialists and I have a few more doctors I need to see to rule out any other issues.
For now, I am going in to have an iron infusion and praying for quick solutions to this problem. I am so grateful that we are beginning to find answers instead of blindly trying medications to treat vague symptoms.
I appreciate the prayers, love, and support and am so grateful for all of you who have lifted us up.
This doesn't change anything. If anything, it only makes me want to fight harder to build the kingdom of God and punch the enemy where it hurts the most... soul count! Life is short and tomorrow is never promised. I don't want to miss an opportunity to love people and love Jesus while I still can!!!

08/07/2024

Just to follow up, the big thing today wasn't what we had originally wanted but God is making a path that we didn't see. We had to take a moment to let our hearts adjust to the new idea because we thought that the first plan was what we wanted.
That happens a lot for us. We get our hearts set on what we had in our minds and then realize that God has a different plan. BUT we trust HIM so we are going to take a deep breath and head down the path He has led us to.
Thank you for praying. Keep praying and I'll post more details about it all very soon.
We love you and appreciate every prayer and all the love & support.

07/29/2024

Working Title...

07/27/2024

Here is my first appearance as a guest on a podcast! Thank you for having me, 5:17 Ministries / Michael Holman !!!

07/12/2024

Our first official Newsletter is FINALLY here!

You don't want to miss this.     Welcome to the journey!   Thank you for joining us on this great adventure that God has called us to take. To be honest, we have been on this adventure for quite some

06/27/2024

Today's quote:
by Dr. Myles Munroe (Rediscovering Kingdom Worship)
"It's easy to complain when you are faced with things that frighten you or circumstances that never seem to get better. Nevertheless, if you want God to come into your cell, you must resist the temptation to grumble, murmur, and complain. You have to make the decision to praise Him instead."

Psalms 22:3
' But You are holy, O You Who dwell in [the holy place where] the praises of Israel [are offered].'

But You are holy, O You Who dwell in [the holy place where] the praises of Israel [are offered].

06/23/2024

Sunday Update - (no
Joe is home and resting. He is still recovering slowly and will probably need a bit more time to fully recover from everything but should be back to his regular schedule within the next week or so. He still has swelling in his feet and legs and a heavy cough. Follow up appointments are coming for pulmonology, cardiology, endocrinology, and sleep medicine for a sleep study as well as a follow up with his family doctor.

Yesterday we went to the YMCA with Adrienne Hensley (SHE ROCKS!) and Maya to take Timmy and our bonus boy swimming to burn off some energy. (Indoor pools are great for not burning up in the summer!) We stopped at McDonalds for some happy meals and then Salvation Army for some clothes. I was so excited to be able to get him 3 pants, 3 shorts, 2 t shirts, & 2 pjs! He loved being able to pick out a few things at dollar tree too!
Thank you to everyone who has helped us with these needs! You are a blessing, more than you will ever know! A huge thank you for the grocery delivery too! *Autism* is different for every child and this precious family was sensitive to that. Our bonus boy has very different food preferences than Timmy so we got a list of things he likes and they went out to get them for us. God is so good! We are simply taking things one day at a time and trusting God for "our daily bread".
Our precious boy's mom is still in the hospital and we are not sure when she will be able to be released. Please continue to pray.
*Pray for our precious boy & his mom for peace, healing, and that they would see the hand of God moving in their lives, fighting their battles, and providing for their needs.
*Pray for our bonus boy as he is doing his best to adjust to a huge disruption in his schedule.
*Pray for our family adjusting to a huge shift in our schedules and routines (including added appointments for Joe, and extra accommodations)
*Pray for my strength and energy keeping up with caregiving, to be sensitive to everyone's needs.
*Pray that everything we need will be there as we need it so that we can continue to serve as God leads. I always want to so 'yes' when He opens doors for us to walk through. Even the unplanned ones or the ones that take us on a detour!
Thank you for your love and continued support.