CJ's Medical Fund
Donation protected
Hi. We are Chris and Amorette Rice. We have three children. There is CJ who will be three in February, sister Seren who is a year and a half, and infant sister Isabella who is three months old.
This gofundme story is about our little honeybee, CJ. He is an active toddler. He runs, jumps off of furniture, climbs the child gates between our rooms, and is just the greatest little kid ever! He has a big personality and a great sense of humor. He loves going to the farm, playing with his sister and his friends, and going in Mommy's truck to go shopping, to restaurants, and to his grandparents' houses. He loves doggies and watching the deer in our yard and the birds at the bird feeders. He LIVES for Matchbox Cars! He loves watching Nick Jr. Paw Patrol is his favorite show. He likes coloring, painting, and making other art projects which we hang up all over the walls in his room.
A couple of weeks ago, we started noticing that he had some small circular bruises that weren't consistent with the normal bruises he obtained through his regular playing, jumping, climbing, and falling activities. They were on his legs and arms, but then also on other less exposed parts of his skin such as on his side under his arm and the side of his neck. Chris noticed one night that CJ looked extremely pale. He had been irritable for a long time too and we had been chalking that up to him going through the terrible twos. In addition, he has been a very picky eater for a long time. So we thought maybe he was irritable because he wasn't getting enough nutritious foods into him. Again, we attributed that to him just being a typical toddler. But due to the unusual bruising and paleness, we decided to take him in to see his pediatrician. THIS TURNED OUT TO BE A LIFE SAVING DECISION! The pediatrician agreed that he was very pale and had blood drawn. Before I even got home from the doctor's office, he called me and asked me if I could safely pull over so he could talk to me. Immediately, I felt a sense of dread. He told me that the blood they had just run showed abnormalities in the red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets which was consistent with a blood disease such as leukemia. He said I should go straight home, pack a bag for CJ and for myself and Chris and head straight up to Yale/New Haven Children's Emergency Room and that he would be calling ahead to have a hematologist ready for when we showed up.
To make a long story short, they drew blood and admitted us on Wednesday January 4, 2017. Over the ten days that we were there, CJ had extensive testing and procedures done including an operation to install a port under the skin in his chest for recieving chemo treatments and for blood draws, two lumbar punctures (spinal taps), a bone marrow biopsy from his hip, blood and platelet transfusions, chest x-rays, an echocardiogram, and two doses of chemo. He was diagnosed with Pre B Cell A L L (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia). He is one month shy of his 3rd birthday. By his third birthday, he will most likely lose his hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes.
He still has a long road of intensive treatment ahead of him. He has to go to the clinic twice a week for blood draws, chemo treatments, blood and platelet transfusions, and additional invasive procedures. It is torture for him to go through all of this but it is also torturous for us to watch him endure these painful invasive procedures and side effects of his meds and know that he can't understand or reason why this is happening.
Neither Chris nor myself are working. I was on unpaid childcare leave after having Isabella in October. I am currently buying my own health insurance each month because since I'm not on payroll anymore, I no longer recieve my health insurance. The astronomical cost per month is $2,160.64 just to maintain my same United Healthcare insurance that I had while I was working. We still have copays to pay for all of CJ's medicines as well as gas and parking when we have to go to the clinic or up to Yale. In addition, we have regular monthly household bills including formula, wipes, and diapers which really add up for three little ones.
I am a kindergarten teacher and had intended to come back from my childcare leave on February 1st, but with CJ's leukemia diagnosis I am now at home as his full time caregiver. I also can't take the chance of catching anything from work and bringing it home to CJ. His immune system is compromised and any little cold or even a fever is treated as very dangerous and will most likely result in an automatic admittance back into the hospital for an extended period of time.
Chris is a seasonal worker and right now, we are at the mercy of the weather. If it snows, he plows. If it doesn't, he makes no money. To compound that, he has a torn labrum in his shoulder and cysts pressing on the nerve causing nerve damage. So even if he is plowing, he is still limited as to what he can do. He was supposed to have surgery at the end of January, but that surgery is now cancelled.
Any donations we recieve will go directly to CJ's care and also to keep our household afloat and help us to take care of our girls. We need funds as soon as possible because money we have allocated for bills will run out by February 1st.
We are hardworking people and we never ask anyone for anything, but as hard as it is for us to reach out and be vulnerable, we have to for CJ and for our girls. We would be grateful for any and all donations. I am the chair of the Relief Fund Committee at my school which raises money within the school to help people affected by natural disasters and tragedies (Boston Marathon Bombing and Sandy Hook). I know how every single little bit adds up and helps. Every single penny is appreciated. After years of running fundraisers to raise money for people in the U.S. and other countries, I never thought I'd ever be in the position where I'd need to do one for one of my own children.
Thank you in advance for letting us share our story about our little honeybee, CJ. Thank you to all of our family and friends who have reached out and sent their love, thoughts, and prayers to us. Your encouraging messages and advice have helped us to remain positive when we feel like crumbling. We love and cherish you all.
This gofundme story is about our little honeybee, CJ. He is an active toddler. He runs, jumps off of furniture, climbs the child gates between our rooms, and is just the greatest little kid ever! He has a big personality and a great sense of humor. He loves going to the farm, playing with his sister and his friends, and going in Mommy's truck to go shopping, to restaurants, and to his grandparents' houses. He loves doggies and watching the deer in our yard and the birds at the bird feeders. He LIVES for Matchbox Cars! He loves watching Nick Jr. Paw Patrol is his favorite show. He likes coloring, painting, and making other art projects which we hang up all over the walls in his room.
A couple of weeks ago, we started noticing that he had some small circular bruises that weren't consistent with the normal bruises he obtained through his regular playing, jumping, climbing, and falling activities. They were on his legs and arms, but then also on other less exposed parts of his skin such as on his side under his arm and the side of his neck. Chris noticed one night that CJ looked extremely pale. He had been irritable for a long time too and we had been chalking that up to him going through the terrible twos. In addition, he has been a very picky eater for a long time. So we thought maybe he was irritable because he wasn't getting enough nutritious foods into him. Again, we attributed that to him just being a typical toddler. But due to the unusual bruising and paleness, we decided to take him in to see his pediatrician. THIS TURNED OUT TO BE A LIFE SAVING DECISION! The pediatrician agreed that he was very pale and had blood drawn. Before I even got home from the doctor's office, he called me and asked me if I could safely pull over so he could talk to me. Immediately, I felt a sense of dread. He told me that the blood they had just run showed abnormalities in the red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets which was consistent with a blood disease such as leukemia. He said I should go straight home, pack a bag for CJ and for myself and Chris and head straight up to Yale/New Haven Children's Emergency Room and that he would be calling ahead to have a hematologist ready for when we showed up.
To make a long story short, they drew blood and admitted us on Wednesday January 4, 2017. Over the ten days that we were there, CJ had extensive testing and procedures done including an operation to install a port under the skin in his chest for recieving chemo treatments and for blood draws, two lumbar punctures (spinal taps), a bone marrow biopsy from his hip, blood and platelet transfusions, chest x-rays, an echocardiogram, and two doses of chemo. He was diagnosed with Pre B Cell A L L (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia). He is one month shy of his 3rd birthday. By his third birthday, he will most likely lose his hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes.
He still has a long road of intensive treatment ahead of him. He has to go to the clinic twice a week for blood draws, chemo treatments, blood and platelet transfusions, and additional invasive procedures. It is torture for him to go through all of this but it is also torturous for us to watch him endure these painful invasive procedures and side effects of his meds and know that he can't understand or reason why this is happening.
Neither Chris nor myself are working. I was on unpaid childcare leave after having Isabella in October. I am currently buying my own health insurance each month because since I'm not on payroll anymore, I no longer recieve my health insurance. The astronomical cost per month is $2,160.64 just to maintain my same United Healthcare insurance that I had while I was working. We still have copays to pay for all of CJ's medicines as well as gas and parking when we have to go to the clinic or up to Yale. In addition, we have regular monthly household bills including formula, wipes, and diapers which really add up for three little ones.
I am a kindergarten teacher and had intended to come back from my childcare leave on February 1st, but with CJ's leukemia diagnosis I am now at home as his full time caregiver. I also can't take the chance of catching anything from work and bringing it home to CJ. His immune system is compromised and any little cold or even a fever is treated as very dangerous and will most likely result in an automatic admittance back into the hospital for an extended period of time.
Chris is a seasonal worker and right now, we are at the mercy of the weather. If it snows, he plows. If it doesn't, he makes no money. To compound that, he has a torn labrum in his shoulder and cysts pressing on the nerve causing nerve damage. So even if he is plowing, he is still limited as to what he can do. He was supposed to have surgery at the end of January, but that surgery is now cancelled.
Any donations we recieve will go directly to CJ's care and also to keep our household afloat and help us to take care of our girls. We need funds as soon as possible because money we have allocated for bills will run out by February 1st.
We are hardworking people and we never ask anyone for anything, but as hard as it is for us to reach out and be vulnerable, we have to for CJ and for our girls. We would be grateful for any and all donations. I am the chair of the Relief Fund Committee at my school which raises money within the school to help people affected by natural disasters and tragedies (Boston Marathon Bombing and Sandy Hook). I know how every single little bit adds up and helps. Every single penny is appreciated. After years of running fundraisers to raise money for people in the U.S. and other countries, I never thought I'd ever be in the position where I'd need to do one for one of my own children.
Thank you in advance for letting us share our story about our little honeybee, CJ. Thank you to all of our family and friends who have reached out and sent their love, thoughts, and prayers to us. Your encouraging messages and advice have helped us to remain positive when we feel like crumbling. We love and cherish you all.
Organizer
Amorette Intervallo-Rice
Organizer
Weston, CT
