A Phoenix veteran who served in the U.S. Army and later worked in critical care is getting national support as she battles Stage 3 breast cancer.
Amber, 32, is Arizona’s featured veteran in “For Your Service,” a 50-state GoFundMe campaign launched by kindness creator Samuel Weidenhofer to honor veterans and veteran families across the country.
As of Tuesday, Amber’s fundraiser had raised $3,216 toward a $6,000 goal.
The campaign launched in time for Military Appreciation Month in May and grew out of the viral story of Ed Bambas, the 88-year-old Army veteran whose GoFundMe raised nearly $2 million after a video of him working at a grocery store to make ends meet drew national attention.
Bambas helped launch Amber’s fundraiser with an initial $1,000 donation, extending the generosity his story inspired to another veteran in need.
Amber was diagnosed with Stage 3 breast cancer at 32. A year later, it became metastatic. She beat it twice and reached remission, according to her fundraiser.
At the end of 2025, doctors found a new tumor after months of testing, along with signs affecting her spine and nerves. Doctors believe it may be leptomeningeal disease, an aggressive cancer affecting the brain and spinal cord. Her fundraiser says there is still hope it has not advanced that far and that her current treatment is helping slow the disease.
The care requires specialists, fast action and treatments not fully covered by insurance.
Amber is medically retired, and her wife, Celena, has stepped away from work to care for her full time. Donations will help cover treatment, travel to specialists and daily support.
Amber served in the U.S. Army and was deployed during 9/11 and Operation Iraqi Freedom. She later worked in critical care and helped patients during COVID. She has also volunteered in her community and supported veterans, families and others in need.
“She has always stood out for her strength and heart,” Melissa Adams, who has known Amber since 2016, wrote on the fundraiser. “Even now, she continues to lift others up while fighting her own battle.”
Weidenhofer’s “For Your Service” campaign is built around a larger mission: helping one veteran or veteran family in every U.S. state never have to work again.
With more than 15 million people behind Weidenhofer’s social media platform, organizers describe the campaign as more than a fundraiser. It is a national movement to honor those who served, one state at a time.
For Amber, the Arizona stop in that campaign brings financial help, national visibility and a reminder that her fight is not being faced alone.
