Caring for his father
Starting at Thanksgiving, 2019, my father became seriously ill, requiring hospitalization throughout most of December. His ailment required surgery to repair, but his health had declined to the point where surgery would have been too dangerous; instead, he was sent home to recover. During January, his health continued to decline, to the point where he was admitted into the Intensive Care Unit at Alaska Regional Hospital, in Anchorage, AK. Weeks of intensive care was able to bring him back from the brink of death, but he was still too weak for surgery. Again, he was sent home to recover.
This time, his health began to improve- after a few weeks, he was able to mostly take care of himself, though certain parts of his daily routine required assistance; assistance that I was thankfully able to provide. About the same time his health had improved to the point where he would have been a candidate for the surgery that he so desperately needed, the State of Alaska put a moratorium on "elective surgeries", due to COVID-19. Months went by, with my dad tethered to an IV which provided a modicum of nutrition; waiting for the call from the surgeon saying that he could perform the surgery. That call finally came at the end of May, and we were able to schedule the surgery for June 6th.
While the initial surgery was deemed successful, complications began cropping up almost immediately. The surgery sites were failing to heal, and infections began to set in. Meanwhile, I was forced to remain on the sidelines, unable to visit my father in his greatest time of need, again due to COVID-19 restrictions on hospital visitors.
On July 26th, 2020, after nearly two months of not being able to see my dad, I was given permission to finally visit him in the hospital- the doctors had run out of options, and the hospital administration graciously allowed me to spend time with my father before he passed away on July 31st.
Throughout my dad's illness, I was his primary caregiver at home; this necessitated spending an inordinate amount of time away from work, and the bills have kept racking up. My savings account has been depleted, I've cashed out the majority of my retirement account, and have exhausted unemployment insurance. Now, not only am I in arrears on my mortgage and virtually every other bill, I am faced with the final expenses of laying my father to rest.
I am at my financial wits end- without your generosity, I am in danger of losing my home, on top of everything else I have already lost.
The picture is of Samson, my two-year old Alaskan Malamute, who has no idea why I've not been myself lately.
