Main fundraiser photo

Bales Family Emergency Fund

As many of you know, my dad, Terrell Bales is a loving husband and father of 4.  We are his entire world.  Being the sole provider of our family, the medical crisis he’s suffered has created a tremendous hardship both financially and emotionally.  At 46 years old, he’s suffered a massive stroke.  Please take a few minutes to read our story and see for yourself why we’re asking our friends and family for help.

In June of this year, my mom and dad finally realized their dream of opening their own automotive repair shop.  They put every dollar they had into this business.  Many new businesses struggle, but my parents had a particularly hard time as it was just the two of them running the shop; most times working 7 days a week/15 hrs a day.  Unfortunately, the business was not doing as well as they’d hoped but they saw signs of things picking up in early November.  It became clear to me the struggle my parents were facing trying to take care of both the business bills and home, so I transferred to a University closer to home so I could move back and help as much as I could with the heavy financial burden. Fast forward to November 23rd – the day before Thanksgiving….

While at the shop with my mom, my dad suffered a massive stroke and brain bleed due to high blood pressure that he was unaware he had.  My mom rushed him to the hospital where he was transported immediately to a larger hospital in the Houston Medical Center so he could receive care in the ICU. Once in a more stable condition, he stayed there in the stroke unit for over a week before moving to an inpatient rehabilitation center in Sugar Land for another two weeks.  He suffered severe paralysis of his entire left side which left him unable to walk or use his left hand (he is left handed).  Fortunately, he’s able to talk and has all cognitive functions.   My mom had to make the difficult decision to close the shop as she didn’t have the means to hire a mechanic to take my dad’s place.  As it stands, the doctors are unsure if my dad will regain enough function to work as a mechanic or do any job that requires the use of his dominant hand. 

The fall-out of closing the business has been immense.  Legal issues, court fees, extensive debt that my parents can’t pay due to them having no income is devastating.  I was fortunate enough to be hired at a local income tax office and am trying my best to help my family but my income is limited and I’m a full-time student. My sister and I are helping my mom care for our younger brothers as best we can while my mom looks for work.  One of the largest problems is that my dad needs therapy, but due to medical insurance changing, he may not be able to receive any.  As well, my family has a great deal of personal debt from opening the business.  My mom has told me her immediate goal is to keep the mortgage and utilities paid, but without her having a college degree or job history (she was a stay at home mom for 19 years before going to work at the shop with my dad), it is proving difficult to find a job that pays enough for her to support 6 people. 

My personal goal is to try to raise enough money to keep our family in our home until my parents are able to find work.  My dad realizes he needs a career change since he probably won’t be able to work as a mechanic anymore.  The first step is to be able to regain use of his left side so he may pursue a new path.  

This has been a very difficult year and I worry about my mom’s health as she struggles to care for my dad and us kids.  My parents are extremely private and don’t like asking for help which is why I’m reaching out to our wonderful community that has shown such care during this time (thank you to everyone that has offered their help so far). I’m asking family and friends to see if you can find it within your hearts and budgets to help us try to keep our home and bills paid while we all try to deal with this new life we’re suddenly faced with.  The bottom line is no matter what, we have our dad.  This has been the scariest thing we as a family have ever had to face in our lives, but we can’t image a world without him. 


Thank you and with much love,

Jordan, Samantha, Justin and Sean Bales

 

Donate

Donations 

  • Lindley manalo
    • $100 
    • 7 yrs
Donate

Organizer and beneficiary

Becky Nielsen Bales
Organizer
Missouri City, TX
Terrell Bales
Beneficiary

Your easy, powerful, and trusted home for help

  • Easy

    Donate quickly and easily.

  • Powerful

    Send help right to the people and causes you care about.

  • Trusted

    Your donation is protected by the  GoFundMe Giving Guarantee.