Shown in the photo is Penelope, a 1yr old with down syndrome who recently underwent open heart surgery. Her parents are Brian and Tiffany Padias.  She had a rough recovery after that surgery, but pulled through like the champ she is. Recently, she was hospitalized again due to Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV.   RSV causes infections of the lungs and respiratory tract and usually affects children under the age of two. Her mom, Tiffany, took her to the ER and she was quickly admitted to the hospital in critical condition. During her stay, she developed fluid in her lungs and was found to have pneumonia  and pulmonary hypertension. She then required a breathing tube for support and was intubated. 

Within two days of Penelope being admitted, her little sister, Journi (just two weeks old), began to develop difficulty breathing and signs of distress. She was taken to the ER  and admitted to the hospital with RSV as well.  Journi is also shown in the pictures. They are just a few rooms away from each other.

To top all this off, the family needs to move out of their house by next week, they have a 3 year old at home to care for, and the Father, Brian, recently had his car stolen which had his business equipment in it. This business  is their only source of income. They did recover the vehicle, but he was unable to recover the expensive equipment inside and has lost time at work. He has been working hard to build it back up and recover from that loss. 

This family has been through so much and have kept their heads up. They are genuinely kind and caring people who have just been dealt a bad hand this past few months.  Please consider helping them in any way you can. Even a $5 donation can go a long way. Thank you in advance for your support and donations.