Caregiver for Lukas

My name is Lynn, and I work with Lydia Voss at Crystal Springs Elementary. I am fundraising to help her find a caregiver for her son, Lukas, as she returns to teach kindergarten on August 31st.

Lukas is an amazing, resilient 21-year-old who was diagnosed as a toddler with a spinal cord tumor. At that time, he endured multiple surgeries but did well for a while, even learning to walk with a walker. Unfortunately, the tumor spread and Lukas then endured 7 years of various chemotherapies and trial drugs, which wreaked havoc on his little body. Lukas is now a paraplegic who is largely bed bound and functions at about a preschool level.

Lydia has worked relentlessly this summer to find a caregiver before school starts. Lukas is covered by disability services, and in years past, Lydia has found caregivers through the Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA) at no cost to her. This summer, despite searching and searching, she has had zero success. She recently re-contacted all 13 DDA agencies and got the same answers – there are no available caregivers, all agencies are trying to hire, and no one is applying. Her Facebook posts seeking help have been shared close to 100 times, yet she still hasn’t been able to find someone.

Through this process, Lydia has learned that because the state pays so poorly, people don’t want these jobs. This is maddening and shines a light on an inequitable and broken system — Lukas is covered for care yet no providers are available unless Lydia can pay out of pocket for a private caregiver. The cost of this is around $6,500 a month — an impossible sum for anyone, much less a single mom with a younger son heading to college this fall.

Lydia has been forced to consider two remaining options: Put Lukas in a residential home or take an emergency family leave to care for Lukas herself. At this point, her “best” option is an emergency leave.

This is heartbreaking. Lydia is a much-loved teacher who pours heart and soul into her students, but when forced to choose between Lukas and work … it’s going to be Lukas all the way.

Let’s be sure Lydia NEVER has to make this choice!

We can quickly pull together funds to help her hire a caregiver for two months as she continues to seek a long-term, sustainable solution. If she were able to find a DDA-approved caregiver before two months’ time, she could use the funds to supplement that person’s income.

If you can give even a few dollars, it will help. If you can share the link to this fundraiser, that will help as well. The more people who have an opportunity to donate, the quicker we can gather funds. School starts on Aug. 31. Let’s make this happen for Lydia and Lukas!