Dear Friends,

Ever since I started in politics, I always found it easier to talk about issues, problems, solutions, legislation, and public policy, rather than talking about myself. It has always felt uncomfortable and self-serving to do so, and I never wanted to be the politician who always talked about their resume and gave self-promoting, boring anecdotal stories about their humble beginnings.

So know that writing this email about my health situation is challenging for me.

A few weeks ago, I was diagnosed with a rare form (less than a thousand cases per year) of thyroid cancer.

This news shocked me as I am only 50 years old. I feel like I'm in great shape, have no family history of this type of cancer, and have zero symptoms. This type of cancer isn't caused by the environment or personal lifestyle choices; as my doctor said, it's caused by bad luck. Given the circumstances, I feel incredibly fortunate the doctors found this as early as they did.

The only treatment for this type of cancer is surgery, which I have had.

As I write this, I am at home and recovering well, and the good news is my doctors are confident the surgery was a success, and I look forward to making a full recovery.

I originally wanted to keep this a private matter, but unfortunately, the surgery was more intense and invasive than I initially expected.

So I will do something I've never done in my entire life.

I will follow the doctor's orders and take a few weeks off. I am canceling all public appearances for the next few weeks.

Unfortunately, this comes at a bad time because I must reschedule our big fundraiser at Bowles Farm for September 7th.

If you have already purchased tickets and sponsorship, thank you. I like my job and, of course, need to host a fundraiser this year. Ideally, I would like to apply those tickets and sponsorships already sold to a fundraiser I will host later this year. My goal would be to host it around the Christmas timeframe. However, if you would like a refund, reply to this email, and I will ensure you are refunded.

Still, even though I am off for a few weeks, my office is open. If you need any constituent services, my staff does a fantastic job, so if you have an issue you think I can help with, please don't hesitate to email us at: [email protected]

Thank you for your understanding and patience. I apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. Again, I look forward to seeing everyone at the rescheduled fundraiser soon.

Finally, please pray for my wife, Kathy. The last few weeks have been stressful, and she has done a great job caring for me even though I am a terrible patient.

Thank you all again for your love and support.

Sincerely,

Matt Morgan