Otilia Arias is an amazing human being, an inspiration to many people! She is a widowed mother of 4, grandmother of 2 beautiful little girls, sister to 8 siblings, a daughter of amazing parents and a loving friend to many. She is a faithful employee at Joliet West High School as a teacher assistant and is loved by many there! She has forgone thru many challenges in her life with a huge smile on her face along the way.

With losing her husband in May of 2013 due to cancer, she kept on being the best mother she can be all on her own. In April 2017 we got the devastating news that she was diagnosed with breast cancer. We were in fear because we had just lost our father 3 years back at the time. But with God in our life, we all stayed with a positive heart and had faith she will beat this and live a long fulfilled life! She went thru surgery to remove the cancer in March 2018. She recovered well and started chemotherapy and radiation. In November 2018 they told her she was cancer free! 

Sadly and most recently, March 12th, she lost her father. It was a very hard for everyone to endure. Even with her strong faith and her positive heart, it was very hard to cope. She was at peace when she was reminded of where he went and how he's spending his time with our Lord. 

She continued with chemo and radiation and continual scans. Everything seemed to be fine and we had no other concerns. On April 8th, she was admitted to the emergency room due to a really bad migraine. The result? Cancer has spread to her brain and created a tumor which needed to be surgically removed... Our faith was definitely being tested at this point!! Her reaction? "I gotta do what I gotta do" with a smirk. Always so positive! How does she do it? 

Surgery ended up being a success! She is going to be doing physical therapy, speech therapy and some radiation. The doctor said she will be fully recovered in about 4-6 weeks. Since the school year is almost over, chances are she will not be returning to work for the remainder of the year. 

With that being said, she will need help financially to pay bills until she can return to work in the fall. Our biggest focus is her healing and well being. Not having to worry about finances reduces a huge amount of stress off her shoulders. We, as her kids, will be helping financially, physically and spiritually as well as keeping a clean space in her home and cooking her meals. For those that cannot support financially is completely understandable. Any other way of help is much appreciated as well! 

Thank you to everyone that has been praying for her and our family. Thank you to everyone that has been there since my dad was going thru his struggles as well. I know he's watching over her and was protecting her throughout the whole procedure. I believe God has heard every single prayer since she is doing a phenomenal job recovering and it has only been day 1! God is in her favor and all glory goes to Him! We are so grateful to still have our momma by our side! Thanks again in advance for your donations. 

Signed with love,

Miguel, Lizette, Tanya and Vyanet Arias 

aka 

"Los Pique's"