To my family and friends, When the ice bucket challenge hit social media in 2014, I would never for a minute have thought ALS would affect my immediate family. But it has - my sister Joanne. Joanne moved to Canada about 30 years ago after she met her husband, Danny, who is a Canadian citizen. She has had a wonderful life enjoying her country, back roads lifestyle with Danny and their son and lots of extended family members living nearby. About two years ago Joanne started having trouble speaking, and then swallowing. After many months of diagnostic testing this past June, Joanne was given her diagnosis of ALS. At this time she already has a feeding tube, and has a machine to expand her lungs daily. She had a tough July with several falls, thankfully without any injuries. On August 4th, the inevitable happened- she fell and fractured her hip requiring surgery for a hip replacement. Because they live in such a rural area, Joanne was sent to a hospital 90 minutes away where she remains today.

The reason I am doing this fundraiser is to help her and her husband Danny out with these unexpected expenses. Danny (who is 78 years old) travels daily to see Joanne and it costs him approximately $30 a visit, adding up to over $200 a week. They live on a retirement fixed income and never planned for something like this. There is no family nearby the hospital in Edmonton where she is at that could offer him a place to stay. Family members are currently working on getting Joanne transferred to a different facility, hopefully the Hospital in Fredericton. This hospital is attached to the Stan Cassidy Rehab Center where Joanne sees specialists for her ALS. They have family nearby who have offered a place for Danny to stay. We are hearing the transfer, if it happens, will be out of pocket for them in the range of $500-$1000.

My goal is to help them out and make their life as easy as possible as they battle this terrible disease.

Danny is devastated and heartbroken as he watches Joanne decline everyday. I’m not asking for big donations, a little bit adds up and will make their day to day struggle a little less difficult.

As we have done in the past, keep those “thinking of you” coming. They clearly put a smile on Joanne’s face!

Thank you,

Marilyn (her sister)

Bert Davenport Santos ( friend and cousin)