Let me give you a little background information about us:

My name is Alyssa and I am Ronnie Bautista's fiancé. Ronnie and I have been together for 5 years, recently moved to Palm Bay, and bought a home. We made plans to get married this coming January 2017 and to start a family.

Ronnie is the father of two beautiful children from a previous relationship and is a wonderful father. He is a VERY hard working man, a tradesman carpenter, and is always HELPING others. Whenever someone needs help and despite how many hours he has already worked or if it is his day off, he always makes time to be there for others. Many people describe him as a true BEST FRIEND. Two of his favorite things to do are to go fishing and to cook. Ronnie is a beautiful person with a beautiful soul and has so much to live for. This is the LOVE of my life and he needs everyone’s help!! Sadly, Ronnie has been in a tragic car accident and we cannot afford all these costly medical bills. This is very concerning because he will need quality care for his recovery and he needs it NOW. I would like to get him in a good rehabilitation center. There is one called the Sheppard Center in GA, which is one of the best rehabilitation centers in the Country for his type spinal injury.





What happened:

On Wednesday, July 27th I received the most horrific phone call in my entire life.   A social worker from the hospital called to notify me that my fiancé, Ronnie, has been in a horrific car accident. His injuries are so severe that he had to be air lifted to the hospital trauma center.  I was in shock.  I knew something was wrong.  I had this awful feeling from the pit of my stomach before I even received that phone call because he was late getting home from work and this was so unusual for him. Now, I was in panic mode. I tried to call my mom and at first could not reach her. I was frantically texting 911!  Finally, I was able to get in touch with her and she told me to stay put because I was hysterical. I then called his sister Crystal to let her know that he was in a bad accident and I need her to come up. I was in no condition to drive so my mom called my uncle to drive me to the hospital.


When I arrived at the hospital, I was escorted to the chapel so that I could speak to the social worker. I became overwhelmed with the thought that he had died and started to panic. The social worker saw that I was frantic and moved me to the next room. The social worker informed me that Ronnie was in the trauma center and at that moment, couldn’t give me any updates of his situation. I waited patiently for his sister to arrive. Finally the doctor came in and told me that he broke his neck, he has a spinal cord injury, fractured and bruised ribs, has lacerations on his face and hands, a broken shoulder, and that he was in a coma.  Ronnie was ejected from his car and was found partially through the window of his vehicle.  Ron wasn't wearing his seat belt. My heart dropped. I was not allowed to see him yet because he was still in the trauma center and was not cleaned up yet. That was the most difficult and heartbreaking hospital visit of my life and I felt so helpless!!

 The next day I spoke to the Neurosurgeon, he said that Ronnie broke C1 and C2 of his neck and had a spinal cord injury which was a bruise on his spine.  These injuries are causing Ronnie to not have any sensation/feelings or movement from his shoulders all the way down to his feet. He is now considered to be a complete quadriplegic. They basically told me that he will never be able to walk or feel again and may always have to be on a ventilator to help with breathing. He may never be the same Ronnie again. There was nothing they can do. Ronnie will need to heal on his own and go through intensive therapy. I fell apart with that news. I broke down and I could hardly understand what was being said me; it was unbelievable. My heart is broken. I feel like I lost my best friend!!

After hearing that news my heart was just so heavy.  I went to Church and have been requesting EVERYONE to pray for him. I have been crying out to God to help my sweetheart. He is a strong man. I truly believe he WILL overcome this.  Anyone who knows Ronnie, knows he is not the type to take no for answer and will do everything he can to overcome his horrible injuries.

That first weekend I was not able to visit Ronnie at the Hospital’s ICU as frequently as I would have liked. Mainly because ICU limits how many visitors at the same time and I was giving his family and friends the opportunity to spend with him. That was difficult because I just want to be by his side. So instead, I would visit early in the morning to wish him a good morning and say goodnight at night. The nurse stated it will even be a miracle if he could breathe on his own without a ventilator. 

His determination to survive started with him waking up in 10 hours instead of the 72 hours the doctors had given him.  The next day he proved them all wrong about his breathing as he was trying his best to breath on his own with less help from the ventilator. I said "Good Job Babe! I'm so proud of you", "You are my superman!" "You got this, be strong".  I feel that words of encouragement have been helping him.  That same day, Ronnie shrugged his shoulders. The nurse told me that could be spasms but today 8/1/16, he shrugged his shoulders for me 6 times! 

We are now at a crossroads to decide on the appropriate rehabilitation center for his therapy. If Ronnie is accepted to our first choice, the Shepherds Center in Atlanta, GA, Ron will need to be flown by air medical transport and transferred into another ICU unit at the rehab center.   This transport alone will cost $8,700.00 that his insurance may not cover or they may not cover the entire costs. We need to have the funds available so that they can schedule the transport and he can take advantage of the open space they have for him. 

Ronnie’s insurance is going to end and there is a process that needs to take place before he can receive Medicare. Additional financial resources will be needed for all his required medical care. I am asking on Ronnie’s behalf, for some financial assistance to help with all the medical bills and rehabilitation expenses that will help him on his road to recovery so that he may be able to walk and use his hands again.  This is my best friend, my soulmate. I am so grateful for whatever help we can get from anyone that can give.  Ronnie needs your help.  Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.  I sincerely thank you.  

-Alyssa