In September 2023, Andy Kaplan was diagnosed with two different, both highly rare neurodegenerative genetic conditions, Batten Disease and Sanfilippo Syndrome. His doctors believe he is the only person to ever be documented with both conditions simultaneously. Both of these diagnoses are terminal.

As both conditions are neurodegenerative, they have already caused him to lose significant skills and mobility in a short amount of time. Despite the challenges, his family is working to manage his symptoms and provide him with the highest quality of life by surrounding Andy with love, compassion, and the best possible medical care available.

Andy is turning five years old in November. Over the past two years, as he has continued to grow, his condition has progressed. Andy is now deaf, blind, non verbal, and non ambulatory. He is confined to a wheelchair and fed through a g-tube. His muscles are weakening, making it harder for him to independently support his head and body and has trouble with simple things like coughing. This makes daily life an intensive routine of medications, therapies, and treatments, all aimed at keeping him as comfortable as possible.

Our goal is to raise funds to help the Kaplan family to keep up with his mounting medical expenses as well as be able to have the funds to modify their home so that it is accessible as Andy’s needs continue to grow and change.

The van was just the tip of the iceberg!

With your generous donations, last year the Kaplan family was able to purchase a wheelchair van in order to safely transport Andy to and from school, appointments, and even summer road trips! Remaining funds from the initial round of fundraising were also used to:

The needs don’t stop there, though. As Andy continues to grow older, his needs also continue to grow. This round of fundraising will help with such costs as:

Thank you for considering a donation to this worthy cause. Your support will make a significant difference in the lives of the Kaplans, especially Andy.

Love,

Colleen & Adam Kaplan

Mary & Dan Mostyn

Ed Kaplan

For large donations, checks are encouraged to prevent processing fees. Please let us know if you want your name listed here or if you wish to remain anonymous.

Want to learn more about Andy and how to support him and his family? Please check out www.allforandy.com.

What is Batten Disease?

Batten Disease is a genetic disorder. It typically develops symptoms in late toddlerhood/early childhood. It presents as kids begin losing skills they previously had. It basically attacks the spine and legs as well as causes blindness. Children typically lose mobility and skills leaving them bedridden until death.

What is Sanfilippo Syndrome?

Sanfilippo Syndrome is a genetic metabolism disorder. It leads to serious problems for the brain and nervous system- essentially kids' version of Alzheimer’s. It will likely cause Andy quite a bit of pain somewhere down the line as the disorder manifests.