Help Melvin Get Back In The Saddle
Donation protected
Dear Friends,
For those who have not been aware, on March 18, Melvin Carter collapsed at home from a stroke while working on his driveway. An ambulance was sent and he was rushed straight into emergency surgery. The surgery’s main goal was to break up the blood clot on Melvin’s brain, but it didn’t work. The only option left was to use medicine to slowly break up the clot while he was sedated. At the time, things looked grim. There was significant swelling and he required a feeding tube and a trach tube for breathing.
But as we all know, Melvin is strong and full of life. Melvin began working at Texas A&M University Poultry Science in his teens and only recently retired. But, working for Texas A&M was not all Melvin did. He became indispensable to everyone he interacted with, especially Sammy Catalena and the Catalena Cowgirls. Melvin has always been the jack of all trades and filled in wherever he was needed. He has also worked to take care of his family... and family to Melvin includes a whole passel of folks! Baseball, Rodeos, Play Days, all filled with fun but requiring a lot of work - Melvin was the man! And, he has a true connection with every single person he works with; constantly checking in and making sure everyone is okay!
After the surgery, he spent the next couple weeks fighting his way back to consciousness and self-reliance at a critical care facility in Conroe. He has fought hard and showed some miraculous improvement, which absolutely amazed all of the doctors and nurses. At first, he was only able to give us hope through small movements, like squeezing our hands. Then he moved to a rehab facility in College Station and eventually began breathing and eating on his own. Friends brought his favorite horses, Sassy and Harley to encourage him to stay positive and continue healing.
Then, the most heart wrenching part of our story; Melvin is on the mend and his best friend and father figure, Sammy Catalena, passed away. Melvin always called Carolyn and Sammy Mom and Dad since his teenage years. Melvin was even Sammy's personal chauffeur as Sammy's health began to decline. Suffering the loss of his own health and now suffering the loss of Sammy all while being alone in the rehab facility due to COVID-19 restrictions. To make things worse, insurance is now capped out and he can no longer proceed with his rehab until we can get funding. The nursing facility costs are over $5,000 per month and that does not include rehab. The facility is helping him file for Medicare but we don't know how long that will take. We need to get him rehabbing NOW so he can get back in the saddle and so he can, in his words, “get out of this joint.”
He has regained some movement on his left side, but is still unable to walk. He is able to talk, though it is labored.
What makes all this even more amazing is that he has done all this on his own, basically in isolation, away from friends and family due to the risks of visitors passing on COVID-19. While these improvements are nothing short of astounding, he has a long road of rehab and recovery ahead.
Melvin has always been the kind of person to drop everything to come help those he loves. Now it’s our turn. Let’s help him get strong enough to come home. His misses his friends, family, and beloved horses. All funds raised will go towards paying Melvin’s rehab facility and easing his future financial burdens. He will be unable to work for the foreseeable future and modifications will need to be made to his house to enable him to return home.
You can put in $2, $10, $50, $1000 as much as you can at the moment to help this amazing, generous man. Anything will be appreciated. We know that not everyone can help financially, so if you would like to donate some of your time, that would be of great help too. If you think you can help in this way, shoot us an email.
For those who have not been aware, on March 18, Melvin Carter collapsed at home from a stroke while working on his driveway. An ambulance was sent and he was rushed straight into emergency surgery. The surgery’s main goal was to break up the blood clot on Melvin’s brain, but it didn’t work. The only option left was to use medicine to slowly break up the clot while he was sedated. At the time, things looked grim. There was significant swelling and he required a feeding tube and a trach tube for breathing.
But as we all know, Melvin is strong and full of life. Melvin began working at Texas A&M University Poultry Science in his teens and only recently retired. But, working for Texas A&M was not all Melvin did. He became indispensable to everyone he interacted with, especially Sammy Catalena and the Catalena Cowgirls. Melvin has always been the jack of all trades and filled in wherever he was needed. He has also worked to take care of his family... and family to Melvin includes a whole passel of folks! Baseball, Rodeos, Play Days, all filled with fun but requiring a lot of work - Melvin was the man! And, he has a true connection with every single person he works with; constantly checking in and making sure everyone is okay!
After the surgery, he spent the next couple weeks fighting his way back to consciousness and self-reliance at a critical care facility in Conroe. He has fought hard and showed some miraculous improvement, which absolutely amazed all of the doctors and nurses. At first, he was only able to give us hope through small movements, like squeezing our hands. Then he moved to a rehab facility in College Station and eventually began breathing and eating on his own. Friends brought his favorite horses, Sassy and Harley to encourage him to stay positive and continue healing.
Then, the most heart wrenching part of our story; Melvin is on the mend and his best friend and father figure, Sammy Catalena, passed away. Melvin always called Carolyn and Sammy Mom and Dad since his teenage years. Melvin was even Sammy's personal chauffeur as Sammy's health began to decline. Suffering the loss of his own health and now suffering the loss of Sammy all while being alone in the rehab facility due to COVID-19 restrictions. To make things worse, insurance is now capped out and he can no longer proceed with his rehab until we can get funding. The nursing facility costs are over $5,000 per month and that does not include rehab. The facility is helping him file for Medicare but we don't know how long that will take. We need to get him rehabbing NOW so he can get back in the saddle and so he can, in his words, “get out of this joint.”
He has regained some movement on his left side, but is still unable to walk. He is able to talk, though it is labored.
What makes all this even more amazing is that he has done all this on his own, basically in isolation, away from friends and family due to the risks of visitors passing on COVID-19. While these improvements are nothing short of astounding, he has a long road of rehab and recovery ahead.
Melvin has always been the kind of person to drop everything to come help those he loves. Now it’s our turn. Let’s help him get strong enough to come home. His misses his friends, family, and beloved horses. All funds raised will go towards paying Melvin’s rehab facility and easing his future financial burdens. He will be unable to work for the foreseeable future and modifications will need to be made to his house to enable him to return home.
You can put in $2, $10, $50, $1000 as much as you can at the moment to help this amazing, generous man. Anything will be appreciated. We know that not everyone can help financially, so if you would like to donate some of your time, that would be of great help too. If you think you can help in this way, shoot us an email.
Organizer and beneficiary
Catalena Cowgirls
Organizer
Bryan, TX
Carolyn Catalena
Beneficiary
