Hi, I'm Glen, Charlotte's son. If you know my stepdad Brian, you know he spent about 40 years in healthcare, working with doctors and hospitals to help them improve their services. He is one of the kindest, most caring people around, and he is not a complainer. That is exactly why it is so hard for our family to ask for help, and why I'm asking on their behalf.
What Brian lives with. Brian has Type 1 diabetes. Over the years it has caused neuropathy (nerve damage), and it has slowly taken his sight. Over the last five years his vision faded, and for the last two years he has been legally blind. He has also lived with a heart condition for years, and over the last two years it has made it harder and harder for him to stay on his feet.
He never stopped trying. Brian gave it everything he had to keep working, getting to work by Uber with a cane through dozens of falls. But for the last two years he hasn't been able to work, and he hasn't had an income.
Then he broke his hip. A few months ago, Brian fell and broke his hip. The break was serious enough that his hip had to be fully reconstructed before it could be replaced, and the recovery has been grueling. Since then, his heart condition has grown worse. Now, if he stands for more than a minute or so, he can get dizzy, fall or pass out. He walks with a walker and needs care 24/7, and Mom gives him that care every day. He can no longer work, travel or use a computer, so he can't reach out to the friends and colleagues he has made over the years. We're doing that for him.
At the same time. While all of this was happening, their heating and air conditioning went out and needs to be completely replaced. Then their hot water heater failed and flooded the basement. They are heading into winter without working heat or hot water. After two years without Brian's income, their savings are depleted, and there's nothing left to cover it.
Where your gift goes
- Replace their heating and air conditioning system
- Replace the water heater and repair the flooded basement
- Help with Brian's medical and recovery costs
- Help cover everyday bills while Brian can't work
We'll post updates as Brian recovers and as each repair gets done.
My mom put it best: "After exhausting all of our resources, we are asking for your help. Through all of this, Brian remains a loving husband, father and grandfather, and still the most positive person I know."
If you can give, thank you. If you can't, sharing this page means just as much. Brian has spent his life showing up for others. Any help you can give him now would mean the world to our family.
With love and gratitude, Glen, on behalf of Charlotte and Brian
God Bless