I've created this GoFundMe to help my parents with the cost of the EMS, helicopter flight, medical bills, and rehabilitation cost copays that will shortly follow. I have provided information below about this unforeseen tragedy. Nothing prepares you for something like this, and just getting through each day is hard, but what's even harder is the thought of the financial burdens that will follow while healing and just navigating this new way of life. My mother just retired, and both of them are on a fixed monthly income, so my mom is unable to return to work since now all her time will be spent caring for my dad while continuing to raise my nephew and manage their house. Anything to help mom and dad is worth the try.

On Sunday, March 23, 2025, my father Dave had a large frontal brain bleed (a stroke). He started his Sunday morning by attending church with my mother, and within 10 minutes of the service starting, my father started dry heaving and throwing up, at times breaking into a sweat. My mom and I both thought maybe he came down with a stomach bug, so they left church immediately and went home where dad rested on the sofa for the remaining part of the day. Fast forward to later Sunday night around 9 pm, my mother called me and told me she was going to drive my father to the hospital because he was extremely lethargic, was slurring his words, and was confused. I immediately urged her to call for an ambulance since dad is on blood thinners; he could be having a stroke or heart issues, and seconds/minutes count right now. She called the EMS, and they took him to Lewistown Hospital where he was taken back to the stroke unit for a STAT CT scan where they found 90cc of blood resting on his left frontal part of his brain. He was given medication to reverse the blood thinners in hopes of slowing the bleed and was being prepped to be airlifted to Geisinger Danville Stroke ICU.

Once dad arrived in Danville around 11:30 pm Sunday night, the neurosurgery team immediately reviewed dad's scans from the other hospital and did an evaluation on him, then got him settled in his room where he will spend the next few days. I was then met in the waiting room by the doctor who looked over dad, and he said dad had a pretty significant brain bleed that they don't know where the blood is coming from. He will need to have life-saving testing and surgery (craniotomy) to cut out a part of his skull and wash out the blood that was clotting on and in his brain to help relieve the pressure on the brain. If this surgery wasn't done, his brain would continue to swell, putting more pressure on his brain, which would cause the body to start to make more brain fluid, causing even more pressure, which would result in dad slipping into a coma and eventually passing away.

This decision for dad to get this life-saving surgery was a no-brainer; we wanted the best outcome for him and to start his recovery. I went back to see dad; he was very confused and shook his head yes to knowing me but couldn't find the words to say, it was like he was very drunk.

Early morning Monday around 2:30 am, Dad had another CT. Compared from Lewistown to Danville's, they were similar (good sign). He understood most of what’s going on, but most of the time he was confused when asked certain things, and his speech is heavily affected.

Fast forward to later Monday, 3/24, dad was taken back to the operating room at 4 pm (earlier than expected), where they did these life-saving procedures and operations:

1st - Insert an invasive arterial blood pressure monitor to monitor his blood pressure more accurately.

2nd - They will do a cerebral angiogram catheter to detect where the bleed is. Once they locate it, they will do the surgery.

3rd - Craniotomy for the frontal skull will be opened, and they will drain and wash out as much of the blood as they can to help relieve the pressure.

Post-surgery at 9:30 pm

Dad's surgery to remove the cranial flap went extraordinarily well. They were able to remove almost all of the clot, and they placed the cranial flap back in his skull and fastened it with screws and plates. He was resting well after surgery. He was still able to raise both arms and legs and follow most commands. There was no true reason why or what caused this, but instead of wondering, we need to look forward to better days.

When I was still there, the nurse asked dad where he was, and he would agree he was at all 3 places she gave him to pick from. By the next morning (Tuesday), when given the same 3 choices, he remembered he was in the hospital but does not know why. The nurse also put two fingers up, and dad was able to tell her that it was 2.

Fast forward to Wednesday, 3/26

Dad's doing great. The bandages are off of his incision. It’s definitely a long incision, possibly a good 6-8 inches. They cut it into his hairline, so as his hair grows back, you’ll never know it’s there.

Dad does have some impulsiveness, which is all due to the stroke, but he still listens and is easily directed. He unfortunately was not easily distracted when he was chewing his pills when he was asked to only swallow them. He did say, “I am trying,” which is a new phrase today! We will know and understand what will be more permanent once a few weeks go by.

His speech is still heavily affected, but he's had little improvements over the past few days, which is good, and he actually repeated a sentence I said, which is amazing and a great way to kick off his speech therapy!

REHAB - Dad's insurance approved the rehab that’s on Danville's campus. He will be transferred on Thursday, March 27th, to start a daily 3-hour intensive OT, PT, and speech therapy each day, Monday through Friday, for up to 2 weeks (possibly longer depending on his progression).

At this time, any donations are greatly appreciated as they will go directly towards all medical expenses, which I will be helping mom maintain as they come up. The first bill that we have already encountered is the copay for rehab, which will be $825. Dad has a very long road for recovery and a lot to recover from to get back to a semi normal life, so my hopes are to help raise money to help them out so mom can focus directly on caring solely for dad.

If you're unable to donate, please share this. Every donation and every share means a lot to us.

THANK YOU SO MUCH