Jade's Story
Jade Patrick Mitchell was a normal kid blessed with an incredible family and friends. He grew up in Carmi, Illinois and spent his entire childhood with the same group of friends and family. He went to church. He played basketball and football. He made mistakes.
After high school, the scenery changed, but the lifestyle and people remained the same. He went to college, but dropped out during his second semester. Then, he did mission work in Kenya before attending Bible College in Oklahoma. Jade never felt quite comfortable and left Bible College to return home where he worked for an oil and drilling company. These experiences led Jade to realize he was a “people person,” and he turned that skill set into a highly successful career in the automotive industry. The car business took him to Indiana, where he quickly moved from salesperson to finance manager, then to Louisville, Kentucky in April 2014, where he became finance manager of a large dealership.
The position in Louisville was a new summit in Jade’s life. The job offered personal growth and financial promise. For the first time, Jade felt like he was on the right path. Just when he began to feel invincible, Jade woke up almost blind in his left eye. On June 12, 2014, Jade was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS).
Immediately upon being diagnosed with MS, Jade’s life and purpose changed. As finance manager, Jade made a living examining peoples’ credit and closing deals. Through this experience, he recognized that many working and middle class families struggle to make ends meet due to excessive medical bills. CNBC reported in 2013 that medical bills are the leading cause of bankruptcy, affecting nearly 2,000,000 people a year, and that 20% of Americans struggle with medical bill payments yearly. The combination of his diagnoses, narrowly having insurance coverage, and history of examining credit reports littered with medical related bankruptcies suddenly triggered Jade to act.
Twelve days after his diagnosis, Jade founded Stay Positive Stay Aggressive, Inc., a Kentucky nonprofit corporation, with the mission to “Change the World One Family at a Time.” Stay Positive Stay Aggressive (“SPSA”) is a non-profit organization designed to provide direct financial assistance to families that need financial assistance due to MS or other diseases. No gimmicks, no frills – just assistance to folks who need it, regardless of gender, race, religion, age, or sexual orientation, and who personify Jade’s lifelong slogan for life, “Stay Positive Stay Aggressive.”
Jade’s life has a new sense of purpose, and he is changing the lives of those tight-knit friends and family from Carmi, Illinois and beyond. Stay Positive Stay Aggressive is in a state of continuous change and progress. We are limited only by our imagination. If you fit the profile, we encourage you to apply. Since inception, SPSA has given back over $175,000 to local families and programs. As always, Jade urges you to always Stay Positive & Stay Aggressive.
– J. Brandon Johnson, Esq.
– Dr. Mathew Stanley
– Denton Aud, White County States Attorney
“My life changed on June 12, 2014 when I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. My heart was filled with compassion. The main purpose of Stay Positive Stay Aggressive is to change the world and the way we think. We must get out of our comfort zones and stand behind each other, regardless of race, gender, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, or otherwise. If we live with love in our hearts, we will accomplish amazing change.”
– Jade Mitchell
Board of Directors
Jema lives in rural Southeastern Illinois, where she and her husband, Joe, of nearly 40 years raised Jade, who is their only child and founder of Stay Positive Stay Aggressive. Jema works as an administrative assistant at Les Wilson, Inc., an oil and gas drilling and service company. Previously, Jema worked in school for severely handicapped children, exposing her to a world of difficulties and financial burdens that those families face daily. No matter the amount of government or private insurance coverage, the families experienced astronomical expenses, which led to a vicious cycle of working to pay for never-ending bills and caring for their families. She has an impassioned heart for these families and other individuals who cannot speak for themselves.
Her role as “Mom” to this board and many other of Jade’s friends is her greatest joy. She thanks God for giving Jade the heart to make the best of this situation and allowing her to help thousands of individuals thru SPSA, Inc. In her free time she enjoys cooking, decorating, flower gardening, and entertaining friends and family.
Caleb is a fourth year medical student at Kansas City University School of Medicine & Biological Sciences. Caleb witnesses daily the devastating impact medical bills can have patients’ physical and emotional health and wellbeing. This unjust burden falls squarely on hard working Americans that do not qualify for government insurance, yet are unable to afford the ever-increasing insurance premiums, deductibles, and co-pays. Caleb is passionate about Stay Positive Stay Aggressive’s mission to change the world one family at a time. By freeing families from medical debt, Caleb believes the families can focus on fighting the disease. Caleb will serving on the SPSA Board and review medical records to help the Board determine those individuals who will most benefit from our assistance.
Caleb, Sage (his wife of 2 years) and Javan (his 6-month-old son) currently reside in Evansville, Indiana. After graduation, Caleb plans to complete a residency in Family Medicine. Caleb is a Christian dedicated to serving God and people. His heart for serving others began at a young age, and he has continued that service throughout his life. Caleb is involved with food and clothing pantries and has been on several domestic service mission trips. In his spare time, Caleb enjoys spending time with family and friends, playing the piano, singing, leading praise and worship at his church, and boating at Kentucky Lake.
Sam is a free spirited, proud Jewish woman. She grew up in Crown Point, Indiana, a small town outside of Chicago. Sam moved to Evansville in the fall of 2007 to enroll at the University of Southern Indiana, where she met Jade. She majored in marketing but changed to psychology after her first year. She has since taken a job as a fine spirits distributor with Republic Distributors working full time while continuing to pursue her psychology degree. She currently resides in Henderson, KY with her fiancé and 3 fur-babies. Her marketing expertise, experience with nonprofit event planning, and passion make her a perfect fit for Stay Positive Stay Aggressive.
Sam takes great pleasure in serving those less fortunate. As a pub manager in Evansville, she held numerous benefits to support local families in times of need. When asked to be involved in SPSA, she immediately accepted the challenge. “I am excited to work with SPSA, and I look forward to Changing the World One Family at a Time and spreading the message of Stay Positive Stay Aggressive!”
Nathanael Stocke
Nathanael is happily married to his wife and co-board member of SPSA, Whitney Stocke. Born and Raised in Western Kentucky, Nathanael spent his time enjoying the outdoors, playing sports, and performing music whenever he had the opportunity. In 2007, Nathanael enrolled in Chemical Engineering at the University of Kentucky with no concrete career plan. A few months into the fall semester, he noticed a flyer for the student chapter of the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE) and decided to attend their next meeting. Realizing the exciting potential to positively impact people’s lives by developing medicine, Nathanael became aggressively focused on pursuing a career in the pharmaceutical industry.
After completing his B.S., Nathanael enrolled in a doctoral program and was faced with deciding who’s research group to join. The Chemical Engineering faculty members spent several days presenting and pitching their research projects to the incoming class in hopes of recruiting the students. One project stuck out for Nathanael. A project entitled, “Magnetic Nanocomposites for Inhaled treatment of Lung Cancer” was merely a sub-bullet and low priority project for his eventual advisor. However, the recent passing of his maternal grandparents caused Nathanael to select this research project in hopes of honoring his family through his thesis. As such, Nathanael began working on this non-funded and underdefined side project and spent the next 5 years learning, researching, and publishing scientific literature on nanocomposites intended as novel therapeutic platforms for the treatment of lung cancer. The first page of Nathanael’s published thesis reads, “In loving memory of John and Agnus Mitchell.” After receiving his doctorate, Nathanael started working for a local pharmaceutical company, US WorldMeds, where he is now the Senior Manager of CMC Product Development.
Whitney Stocke
Whitney is from Western Kentucky, where her immediate family resides. She grew up learning to value the importance of family, being outdoors, and playing tennis. In 2005, Whitney enrolled at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky, where she graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science in Health Communication and Business.
After completing her degree, Whitney built upon her passion to help improve the lives of others by beginning her career in the medical sales industry. Over the past six years, Whitney has helped provide patients with a combination of medical device, pharmaceutical, and medical service sales.
Currently, Whitney is a Senior Home Health Specialist for Kindred Healthcare. This career path has positioned her in Louisville, Kentucky where she resides with her husband, and co-SPSA board member, Nathanael Stocke.