JIM THORPE -- Many families know that a cancer diagnosis can turn your world upside down, but a new nonprofit in Carbon County is trying to get those families back on their feet.
Mark Edison never wanted to ask for help, but when his kid's principal told him about a new nonprofit in Jim Thorpe, Edison went to check it out.
"I do it for my kids," said Edison. "I do it to survive. How long am I going to survive? I have no idea."
Edison has stage-three lung cancer. He also has three children to care for.
A nonprofit called Turn To Us is helping to make his life a little easier.
"They provide movie tickets, snow tubing, things like that," Edison said. "They kind of keep you together."
Alicia Kline and Nicole Dunn started Turn To Us in July because they saw their friend Amanda lose her battle with cancer. Amanda's family gave up everything just to pay medical bills.
Kline and Dunn saw gaps in support services. Now, they're advocates for the sick and help them with anything from gas money to kids' clothes, whatever they need.
"We don't want anyone to fall through the cracks. That's why our help is geared toward anyone," Kline explained. "There is no age, financial, or specific disease requirements to get our free help."
Right now, Turn To Us is helping people in Carbon County and in the Tamaqua area, but organizers hope one day to expand it even further.
"It's really important and critical for our donations to keep growing and expanding so we can continue helping these families," said Dunn.
The organization runs on donations that go right to the families. Kline and Dunn don't get paid, but they want to help anyone who needs it.
Edison hopes turn to us can stick around.
"Forever," he said. "People need it."