Hello family and friends! I, Stephen Salerno, have chosen to create a GFM account for my mother, Dawn Marlene Salerno's behalf regarding her multiple medical issues and mounting expenses. Growing up, my mother loved helping people more than anything. She wasted no time getting involved and working toward her passion. Since the age of 12 she worked in hospitals as a "Candy Striper" (teenage hospital volunteer), then worked her way up to become an RN at the young age of 19. Not long after that she furthered her education in psychology and achieved her master’s degree by 27. Shortly after, she moved to California as a travel nurse where she sought out to begin her career at some of the most respected hospitals in the country.
           For over 40 years my mother dedicated every ounce of drive and energy in her body to being a full time RN, regardless of the not-so-pleasant and often life changing aspects that the job entails. She loved what she did no matter how hard it often was, and she was damn good at it too. From intense and chaotic graveyard shifts in the emergency room, to ICU and psychiatric units, Ma has seen and dealt with situations that most people could not even begin to imagine. Looking back now, I feel terrible because often times on her days off, she would be back in the ER except with me as her patient, due to another broken bone, head split open or had a skateboard stuck in my leg (true story). Lucky for me, Ma always had great health insurance for us. 
          For as long as I could remember, my mother has had multiple health problems including heart and lung disease, significant back and neck problems, and most recently she was diagnosed with a rare form of blood cancer. Without chemotherapy she is required to have costly blood work on a weekly basis, which depending on the results, require phlebotomies (blood drawing) where up to a pint of blood is taken to thin out her blood and improve her circulation. Furthermore, she is constantly at risk of having a stroke or heart attack. Prior to her being diagnosed with cancer, she fought and is STILL fighting to this day, her loss of hearing.
          I remember when she first brought it up, her suspicion that her hearing seemed to be fading and getting worse by the weeks. After numerous tests, it was confirmed that her ability to hear had been rapidly decreasing and would eventually be completely gone. It gradually became worse every month that went by until now, she is completely deaf in one ear and over 50 percent of her hearing is gone in the other. For most people this would be the icing on the cake; Take time off from work and take care of yourself.  Not for Ma, nothing could make her want to stop doing what she loves.
          Unfortunately the hospital did not see it that way and when they found out about her conditions, decided that she could potentially be a liability, working in the condition that she is in. Regardless of how many years and experience she has under her belt and lives she has helped save, Ma was not only losing her hearing and good health, but she was having her career and passion taken away from her as well. Now without her nursing career, she can no longer afford insurance and the cost of medication, procedures and treatment for her cancer and other health problems.
          IN SUMMARY, I would like to raise money so my mother can have peace of mind knowing that she could afford her medication and insurance in order to fight these life threatening medical conditions and live as comfortably as possible. My mother deserves to live a long, productive life as much as anyone, and without her treatments, the length of her life remains uncertain. It kills me to think that her mortality in FACT has been said to be as short as 6-18 months. Anything at all will be forever appreciated by our family, especially Ma herself.