SANDPOINT — At just 37, Jeremy Krueger was diagnosed on Feb. 9 with inoperable stage IV metastatic pancreatic cancer when pain in his legs sent him to the emergency room.

The pain was caused by blood clots, which kept him from walking for more than a month until they dissolved enough to allow him to do so. CAT scans revealed the cancer in his pancreas had spread to his liver. The doctors cut back on his blood thinners, so the blood clots come and go, so he is still going through bouts where he can't walk, said his mother, Cynthia Bartholomew.

"He is in an awful lot of pain," Bartholomew said. "And we don't know what his prognosis is because he won't let us ask, and he doesn't want to know."

There is no cure, Bartholomew said, but Krueger is a "fighter." He began an aggressive regimen of chemotherapy Feb. 26 and was sent home with a pump that administers the chemo for approximately 46 hours after treatment, Bartholomew said, repeating the process every two weeks.

Bartholomew said Krueger is married to "the love of his life," Jennifer McMillan Krueger. They have four children — Amanda, 17, Jonathon, 16, James, 9, and Kaylee, 8. Krueger worked as a welder/fabricator at Lou's Welding in Sagle until his diagnosis. He does not have health insurance, so the medical bills and living expenses for the family have fallen on his wife's shoulders, Bartholomew said. Jennifer McMillan Krueger is a sales person at Taylor and Sons Chevrolet in Ponderay and they have gone "above and beyond" to assist her in keeping her job, as she has not been able to work for the past month, Bartholomew said.

To help the family with expenses, a fundraiser is scheduled for 4 p.m. Saturday in the Ponderay Events Center, 401 Bonner Mall Way. The event will include a taco feed, live and silent auction, and bucket raffles. The cost is $15 per person or $25 for a family.

Multiple items have been donated for the auction, including Sugarland at Spokane Arena tickets, fishing charters, a seven-day stay at condo stay at Pend Oreille Shores Resort, a two-night stay at Hill's Resort, Festival at Sandpoint tickets, golf packages, spa packages, firewood and much more. They also have several gift certificates and gift baskets with items for kids, pets, wine connoisseurs and more. 

"We have an awful lot of stuff — it's wonderful," Bartholomew said. "There's something for everyone."

A&P Bar and Grill is hosting the bar and the Hoot Owl Cafe is hosting the taco plate, which includes rice and beans. There will also be a dessert auction after dinner

Anyone who would like to help and is unable to attend the benefit can donate online at youcaring.com/jeremykruegerandfamily-1096785.

Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.