Bring Hope into the Hearts of Freddy & his Family

Hello! I am Bronwyn and I am posting this on behalf of Freddy Garcia-Sollows and his family. This GoFundMe is aimed at raising funds to help support Freddy and his loved ones. I have had the privilege of knowing them for 5 years now and unfortunately they have been stuck in this never ending cycle of making ends meet. If you have met this family, you know they are the most caring and generous family even while having nothing. I bring them fresh food as often as I can but I want to be able to help more and show them that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. My mother is a doctor at CHEO and has tried to get Freddy help after his numerous surgeries but we just believe further assistance is needed. Although there are other members in Freddy’s family that would benefit from the love and support given by GoFundMe and its community, this particular campaign is mainly directed towards the youngest child, Freddy.

Freddy was born in 2003, the 3rd child from his mother who had a healthy pregnancy with each of her children. Unfortunately he was born with 4 heart defects that went undetected when assessed with the ultrasound. At just 10 days old he had his first open heart surgery. The doctors at the children's hospital predicted that he would not survive. The 4 heart defects included, truncus aorta which is the absence of the pulmonary valve and the ventricle tube that is directly connected to the lungs, ventricular septal which is essentially a hole in the lower chambers of the heart, deformed aorta that leaked and lastly, the aorta ventricle that was reversed and needed a repositioning. Following the heart surgery as a baby, the doctors investigated the reasonings behind the severe deformities which led them diagnosing Freddy with Digeorge syndrome. Digeorge syndrome is a disorder caused when a small part of chromosome 22 is missing. This deletion results in the poor development of several body systems. Medical complications commonly associated with this syndrome include, heart defects, poor immune system function, a cleft palate, complications related to low levels of calcium in the blood, and delayed development with behavioral and emotional problems that ranged from mild-severe. At age 14 he had a balloon angioplasty which pushed back the next open heart surgery by 2 years. During his grade 10 semester he went into cardiac failure and had another open heart surgery. This procedure was meant to stop the leaking within the aortic valve and replace the pulmonary ventricle valve (a piece of someone else’s heart). During the operation a healthy part of his heart was permanently damaged due to the medication that was used to stop his heart, in order to put him on the bypass machine that he was on for over 10 hours. After this operation, Freddy was on a respirator for 12 days and during that time he had another cardiac arrest. Although this procedure saved his life, his overall heart conditions and quality of life has decreased, as he suffers from new complications. These open heart surgeries will be a continual challenge that he must face every 10-15 years because the artificial pulmonary ventricle valve and the aortic valve will require replacing. Freddy has a severe cleft palate. His oral speech impairment is rated at 80%, which means that 80% of his speech goes misunderstood, causing further communication challenges which limits his drive for social interaction.

His parents, Vivian Sollows and Freddy Garcia have been trying to support him but have not had the funds to do so. His mom Vivian, is the main caregiver and only has 3% of her vision which has weakened her ability to find an appropriate position to support her and those around. This leaves Freddy Sr., the father and only full time worker, to work gruelling hours in order to maintain some form of security ever since arriving in Canada. Freddy Sr. has hopes of retirement but is left with no other option but to continue to work just above minimum wage so that they don’t lose their house.

Freddy’s older brother, Javier, is 20 years old and is the only social link that Freddy has. He is a full time University student who works part time and helps augment extra expenses for entertainment and groceries, while dealing with his own expenses . Freddy is often distraught as soon as Javier leaves the house which leaves Javier in a constant state of worry that clearly affects his day to day life.

After covering the housing expenses, they are always left with inadequate amounts of money to purchase enough groceries. Relying on the food bank, the food that is provided is not fresh and does not consist of nutritional foods that are needed for a family with a sick child. Although Vivian gets disability insurance every month from the government, the government cuts back on the cheque decreasing the amount of funds everytime Freddy Sr. receives a raise. This then removes any opportunities for financial growth and freedom, leaving them in this never ending cycle of helplessness. Every day is a struggle, and unfortunately Freddy has not been able to get the help he needs to live and have a happy, fulfilled life. It is saddening to think about the challenges he faces and will have to continue to face on a day to day basis. Witnessing such a young ambitious boy with dreams and a heart filled with kindness go through these struggles leaves me wanting to do more. This is where I so desperately need your help, I would love to see Freddy thrive and believe in his will to live. This money would go towards speech pathology, physiotherapy, funds for tutoring in order to help him graduate high school and/or a college fund for him. Freddy has also always wanted a big dog like a golden retriever but is aware that his family can’t afford all of it’s expenses. Lastly, if they raise enough money they would finish their basement to make a rec room, so that Freddy is not just stuck in his little bedroom all the time. This would require insulation of the outside wall, ceiling, and the floor. Along with that, plumbing,electrical and further installations of dry wall and ceiling would be needed. Ideally this would include a proper bathroom in order for Freddy to become independent long-term, due to the 10 year wait-list for an assisted living apartment.

I know this has been a tough year and everyone can relate to feeling isolated but this has only made things worse for Freddy and his family. They are undeniably a family of fighters and I know even having money for fresh food would put a smile on their faces.