A Ramp for Dave
Donation protected
David and Christine LoConte here. First of all thank you so much for taking a couple minutes to read our story and thank you even more for the consideration of a contribution. We'd like to take a bit of time to tell you about our Parents Debbie and Dave.
Those of you who know my Father Dave know what a truly amazing person he is. Growing up we got to watch him give constantly to help other people. He is a former Scout Master, PTA member, Fundraiser, Band Parent, Community Figure and a very successful member of the Stratford Board of Ed. The exact same could be said for our mother Debbie. She spent countless hours volunteering her time at Franklin School where both of us completed our elementary education. Between Girl Scouts, PTA, Drama Club and Mini Courses all of her free time was spent giving to other children. She was also a former Band Parent and strong advocate for the youth of Stratford. Needless to say our parents gave more than their fair share to the town of Stratford.
We can truly count ourselves as blessed to have parents like Debbie and Dave. They always ensured we had everything we needed growing up. While we personally believe they did more than their means our parents ensured that we were never denied an opportunity. Be it Little League, Scouts, Ballet or Band we were able to do it all. My parents also ensured that we spent ample time as a family on vacations every year. Our parents gave selflessly to ensure we had the best possible upbringing.
Unfortunately, the family has fallen on some serious hard times. My father's health has taken a serious turn for the worse. For the past 5 years we have watched the man who we used to look at like a hero become someone who struggles to complete the most basic of every day tasks. Since being laid off my father has never truly been able to get his life back on track. Five years ago he was diagnosed with Diabetes which only happened to be discovered because he had a severe infection in his foot. The infection was damaging enough that it cost my father his first toe. The doctors warned us of a lengthy recovery, however none of us truly knew what we were in for. As he recovered from the first of several surgeries we noticed that my father was not looking well. We noticed he was swelling and his skin had some discoloration. A trip to the Doctor would reveal that he had late stage Kidney Disease. To this day he maintains less than 5% kidney function. As a result of having Diabetes and Kidney disease we were warned that our Father's circulation would suffer. True to their word about a year later my father began feeling ill and was again admitted to the hospital with the same aggressive infection. As a result of the severity of the infection he was forced to sacrifice another toe and part of his foot. We were told to expect an even longer recovery and further damage to his kidneys due to the anesthesia used during his surgery. After several weeks of therapy he was discharged and sent home in a walking boot and with the aid of crutches. About this time our father was also forced to begin dialysis because his kidneys had all but failed him. The family inquired about a Kidney Transplant for him and we were informed he could not go on the transplant list until his foot had successfully healed. He still attends to this day and is forced to give up 4 hours a day 3 days a week to undergo the process. By this point you can imagine the delicate emotional state he was in. This pales in comparison to what happened next. After being in the walking boot for over a year and a half, and after undergoing multiple skin grafts to try and expidite healing, the walking boot began warping Dave's foot. His insurance did not deem it a medical nessecity to pay for a replacement and due to the high cost of a new boot he endured with the damaged one. This came to a head when we learned that his foot had completely dislocated and he had essentially been walking on his ankle for quite a while. After visiting several specialists many of whom simply wanted to amputate his foot our parents found a Surgeon willing to try a riskly procedure to reattach his foot. During an extensive surgery his foot was removed and reattached with the hope of fusing bone together and giving our father a chance at normal life. The surgery went as well as could be expected, however, there were several ifs and uncertainties. We were told he would unable to get out of bed for 4 months while he recovered. We were also warned that this was the last chance Dave had at keeping his foot. During his recovery he went through a bevy of emotions as he longed to simply come home. About 2 weeks after his surgery a nurse went to change his dressing only to discover that an infection has gotten into the wound and turned into Gangrene. It covered the top of his foot and one of his toes. He was rushed back to the hospital and gave up his third toe in the name of his recovery. His inital surgery was August 19th last year and he was not discharged until December 23rd. Imagine not being able to get out of bed for over 4 months. He still had a long road to recovery, but for the time being, he was with family.
His foot eventually began to heal and the doctors were optimistic that he was in the final stages of recovery and would be off the crutches and back to normal in no time. He was told to keep using his walking boot and crutches for support, but with each Doctor's Appointment we were given more and more hope. We lived in this hope up until 2 months ago when Dave began complaining of pain in his foot. Our mother would plead with any Doctor that would listen that there was another infection in his foot and it was getting worse. Their pleas were ignored up until 3 weeks ago when he was admitted to Yale New Haven yet again. He was tested and diagnosed with Osteomyelitis. For those who don't know what that is it's an aggressive bone infection which is resistant to all forms of antibiotics. We were told the only treatment option available to our Father was the amputation of his leg up to the knee. We were told all the work done in his reattachment surgery from a year ago was completely undone. His bone had been eaten away and his ligaments and tendons were completely seperated from the bone. Just days after being admitted he went into surgery and his foot was amputated to clean out the infection. A week later the surgery was finished and the amputation was completed. We were told by the surgeons that the surgery was a complete success and that he would be home with us in approximately 6 weeks. We were however, warned about the emotional implications of losing a limb. My father's resolve has never been stronger and he is doing all he can to get home as soon as possible. He is already being fitted for a prostetic and should have it within a couple weeks. He will need to learn to walk all over again. If this is bothering him, Dave is putting on a great game face. He truly is the hero we knew growing up.
Through all this Debbie has been there every step of the way for her Husband. She is truly a saint. She has been his nurse, champion, Chauffeur, Cheerleader, Wife and Spiritual Guide. She has spent more hours than one can count visiting hospitals, nursing homes and doctors' offices all in the name of being their for our father. She has so much in parking fees at Yale and Bridgeport Hospital that she should have a statue built for her. She has spent unmeasureable time arguing with the insurance company and hospitals to get her husband the care he needed. She has learned to take "no" out of her vocabulary and has always been able to find a way. While we have done our part to help out as best we can, it pales in comparison to what she has done for Dave. She has never waivered in her faith that our Father will get back to a normal life and no matter what has happened she has been the family's anchor. That is not to say these past 5 years hasn't taken their toll. The stress of caring for our Father has begun to wear on Debbie. She will never stop caring for our father, but the medical bills keep piling up. Our parents could pay all the money they have the rest of their lives and it would barely put a dent in what they owe. We have reached out for support from countless organizations only to be denied at every turn. No one seems to be willing to help Debbie and Dave out. Two people who have devoted their lives to helping others can't seem to get help from anyone. They have never asked for anything until now. They desperately need help and deserve to get it. With our father unable to work they are living purely on his meager disability allotment and Debbie's income and are struggling mightily to get by.
The first thing they need is the funds to build a handicap ramp at the house so our father can get in and out when he has to go to appointments, dialysis and just to leave the house in general. We are expecting Dave home shortly after the 4th of July and need to have the ramp in place before that. The ramp will cost approximately $3,500 to build. This is money our parents just do not have right now. The rest of our campaign will go to helping cover a portion of the debt our parents owe to the hospitals and doctors.
Our parents are not a charity case. They have never asked for a thing for all that they have done. However, at this stage there is no alternative. We would love to give our parents all they need to get by but neither of us are in a position to furnish the money they need. We cannot express how important it is to get our parents the assistance they need. This is not a luxury vacation or fun money Debbie and Dave are looking for. They truly need help and have nowhere else to turn. To give Dave the ability to go in and out of his house with ease would work wonders to improve his mood about his present situation. We also know that getting some of their medical debt paid down would be a huge asset to both our parents. It would remove some of the stress in a constantly stressful environment.
Words cannot express how thankful Christine, my Mother and I would be for any assistance. Any generosity on your part will go a world's length in helping 2 people who truly need and deserve it. Thank you again for taking the time to read this and thank you so much for any donations. God Speed and God Bless.
-David and Christine LoConte
Those of you who know my Father Dave know what a truly amazing person he is. Growing up we got to watch him give constantly to help other people. He is a former Scout Master, PTA member, Fundraiser, Band Parent, Community Figure and a very successful member of the Stratford Board of Ed. The exact same could be said for our mother Debbie. She spent countless hours volunteering her time at Franklin School where both of us completed our elementary education. Between Girl Scouts, PTA, Drama Club and Mini Courses all of her free time was spent giving to other children. She was also a former Band Parent and strong advocate for the youth of Stratford. Needless to say our parents gave more than their fair share to the town of Stratford.
We can truly count ourselves as blessed to have parents like Debbie and Dave. They always ensured we had everything we needed growing up. While we personally believe they did more than their means our parents ensured that we were never denied an opportunity. Be it Little League, Scouts, Ballet or Band we were able to do it all. My parents also ensured that we spent ample time as a family on vacations every year. Our parents gave selflessly to ensure we had the best possible upbringing.
Unfortunately, the family has fallen on some serious hard times. My father's health has taken a serious turn for the worse. For the past 5 years we have watched the man who we used to look at like a hero become someone who struggles to complete the most basic of every day tasks. Since being laid off my father has never truly been able to get his life back on track. Five years ago he was diagnosed with Diabetes which only happened to be discovered because he had a severe infection in his foot. The infection was damaging enough that it cost my father his first toe. The doctors warned us of a lengthy recovery, however none of us truly knew what we were in for. As he recovered from the first of several surgeries we noticed that my father was not looking well. We noticed he was swelling and his skin had some discoloration. A trip to the Doctor would reveal that he had late stage Kidney Disease. To this day he maintains less than 5% kidney function. As a result of having Diabetes and Kidney disease we were warned that our Father's circulation would suffer. True to their word about a year later my father began feeling ill and was again admitted to the hospital with the same aggressive infection. As a result of the severity of the infection he was forced to sacrifice another toe and part of his foot. We were told to expect an even longer recovery and further damage to his kidneys due to the anesthesia used during his surgery. After several weeks of therapy he was discharged and sent home in a walking boot and with the aid of crutches. About this time our father was also forced to begin dialysis because his kidneys had all but failed him. The family inquired about a Kidney Transplant for him and we were informed he could not go on the transplant list until his foot had successfully healed. He still attends to this day and is forced to give up 4 hours a day 3 days a week to undergo the process. By this point you can imagine the delicate emotional state he was in. This pales in comparison to what happened next. After being in the walking boot for over a year and a half, and after undergoing multiple skin grafts to try and expidite healing, the walking boot began warping Dave's foot. His insurance did not deem it a medical nessecity to pay for a replacement and due to the high cost of a new boot he endured with the damaged one. This came to a head when we learned that his foot had completely dislocated and he had essentially been walking on his ankle for quite a while. After visiting several specialists many of whom simply wanted to amputate his foot our parents found a Surgeon willing to try a riskly procedure to reattach his foot. During an extensive surgery his foot was removed and reattached with the hope of fusing bone together and giving our father a chance at normal life. The surgery went as well as could be expected, however, there were several ifs and uncertainties. We were told he would unable to get out of bed for 4 months while he recovered. We were also warned that this was the last chance Dave had at keeping his foot. During his recovery he went through a bevy of emotions as he longed to simply come home. About 2 weeks after his surgery a nurse went to change his dressing only to discover that an infection has gotten into the wound and turned into Gangrene. It covered the top of his foot and one of his toes. He was rushed back to the hospital and gave up his third toe in the name of his recovery. His inital surgery was August 19th last year and he was not discharged until December 23rd. Imagine not being able to get out of bed for over 4 months. He still had a long road to recovery, but for the time being, he was with family.
His foot eventually began to heal and the doctors were optimistic that he was in the final stages of recovery and would be off the crutches and back to normal in no time. He was told to keep using his walking boot and crutches for support, but with each Doctor's Appointment we were given more and more hope. We lived in this hope up until 2 months ago when Dave began complaining of pain in his foot. Our mother would plead with any Doctor that would listen that there was another infection in his foot and it was getting worse. Their pleas were ignored up until 3 weeks ago when he was admitted to Yale New Haven yet again. He was tested and diagnosed with Osteomyelitis. For those who don't know what that is it's an aggressive bone infection which is resistant to all forms of antibiotics. We were told the only treatment option available to our Father was the amputation of his leg up to the knee. We were told all the work done in his reattachment surgery from a year ago was completely undone. His bone had been eaten away and his ligaments and tendons were completely seperated from the bone. Just days after being admitted he went into surgery and his foot was amputated to clean out the infection. A week later the surgery was finished and the amputation was completed. We were told by the surgeons that the surgery was a complete success and that he would be home with us in approximately 6 weeks. We were however, warned about the emotional implications of losing a limb. My father's resolve has never been stronger and he is doing all he can to get home as soon as possible. He is already being fitted for a prostetic and should have it within a couple weeks. He will need to learn to walk all over again. If this is bothering him, Dave is putting on a great game face. He truly is the hero we knew growing up.
Through all this Debbie has been there every step of the way for her Husband. She is truly a saint. She has been his nurse, champion, Chauffeur, Cheerleader, Wife and Spiritual Guide. She has spent more hours than one can count visiting hospitals, nursing homes and doctors' offices all in the name of being their for our father. She has so much in parking fees at Yale and Bridgeport Hospital that she should have a statue built for her. She has spent unmeasureable time arguing with the insurance company and hospitals to get her husband the care he needed. She has learned to take "no" out of her vocabulary and has always been able to find a way. While we have done our part to help out as best we can, it pales in comparison to what she has done for Dave. She has never waivered in her faith that our Father will get back to a normal life and no matter what has happened she has been the family's anchor. That is not to say these past 5 years hasn't taken their toll. The stress of caring for our Father has begun to wear on Debbie. She will never stop caring for our father, but the medical bills keep piling up. Our parents could pay all the money they have the rest of their lives and it would barely put a dent in what they owe. We have reached out for support from countless organizations only to be denied at every turn. No one seems to be willing to help Debbie and Dave out. Two people who have devoted their lives to helping others can't seem to get help from anyone. They have never asked for anything until now. They desperately need help and deserve to get it. With our father unable to work they are living purely on his meager disability allotment and Debbie's income and are struggling mightily to get by.
The first thing they need is the funds to build a handicap ramp at the house so our father can get in and out when he has to go to appointments, dialysis and just to leave the house in general. We are expecting Dave home shortly after the 4th of July and need to have the ramp in place before that. The ramp will cost approximately $3,500 to build. This is money our parents just do not have right now. The rest of our campaign will go to helping cover a portion of the debt our parents owe to the hospitals and doctors.
Our parents are not a charity case. They have never asked for a thing for all that they have done. However, at this stage there is no alternative. We would love to give our parents all they need to get by but neither of us are in a position to furnish the money they need. We cannot express how important it is to get our parents the assistance they need. This is not a luxury vacation or fun money Debbie and Dave are looking for. They truly need help and have nowhere else to turn. To give Dave the ability to go in and out of his house with ease would work wonders to improve his mood about his present situation. We also know that getting some of their medical debt paid down would be a huge asset to both our parents. It would remove some of the stress in a constantly stressful environment.
Words cannot express how thankful Christine, my Mother and I would be for any assistance. Any generosity on your part will go a world's length in helping 2 people who truly need and deserve it. Thank you again for taking the time to read this and thank you so much for any donations. God Speed and God Bless.
-David and Christine LoConte
Organizer and beneficiary
Dave LoConte Jr.
Organizer
Stratford, CT
Tiffany LoConte
Beneficiary