LOWER MACUNGIE TWP. - Several Chick-fil-A restaurants in the Lehigh Valley are holding a fundraiser Friday for a local family.
Joe Stoess, a 42-year-old U.S. Marine Corps veteran, is battling an aggressive form of cancer.
- The fundraiser is being held at four Lehigh Valley Chick-fil-A stores
- It benefits Joe Stoess, 42, and his family
- Stoess, a retired Marine staff sergeant, was deployed five times — four of them in combat
Shortly after Stoess was diagnosed a year ago, the family got into the routine of stopping at the Chick-fil-A in Trexlertown for milkshakes to decompress from diagnoses or treatments that were taking a toll on Stoess.
They branded themselves the “Milkshake Club.”
As Stoess’ cancer has intensified, friends are stepping up to help. And Chick-fil-A did, too, when it found out about the Milkshake Club, according to family friend Nicole Wistner.
On Friday, the Trexlertown location plans to donate all proceeds from its sale of milkshakes to the family, Wistner said.
Other stores in the region also plan to donate a portion of proceeds, including those in Whitehall, the Lehigh Valley Mall and Route 248 in Lower Nazareth Township, said Chick-fil-A spokeswoman Ashley Thompson.
The Stoess family lives in the Kutztown area. Joe Stoess has received treatment at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest and frequented the Trexlertown Chick-fil-A.
With Joe in the hospital and recently enrolling in hospice care, the family has maintained its tradition and brought milkshakes to Joe, Wistner said. “It’s the only thing he would eat,” she said.
The family sees it as a way to share a moment – and is asking folks to do the same Friday with their loved ones.
“It touched my heart,” said Wistner, who works in marketing. “It’s just an all-around wonderful family. These are really good people.”
“I’m just very grateful for what everyone is doing.”Nicole Wistner, family friend of the Stoess
Joe Stoess, a retired staff sergeant, served 15 years with the Marines and had five deployments including combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. Joe and his wife Renee have three children: Tristan, a senior in college; Cadence, a senior at Kutztown Area High School; and Wyatt, 14.
The family has lived in five states and settled in Berks County last year shortly after Joe retired from the military, Wistner said.
Wistner, who established a GoFundMe, said she’s been overwhelmed by how quickly the fundraiser came together and the outpouring of support.
“I’m just very grateful for what everyone is doing,” she said.
Joe Stoess hopes to visit the Trexlertown Chick-fil-A on Friday if he has the strength, Wistner said. Members of the oncology team that has been treating him also plan to be there.
