Friends of Wally
Donation protected
While living in Costa Rica, Wally suffered a series of small strokes. While he is cognitively clear and strong, he still has significant physical and medical challenges ahead of him on the road to recovery and establishing a home back in the U.S.
This fund is to support his urgent transition home, pay for medical care before my Medicare kicks back in (July 2019), support physical therapy and find a place to live in Bucks County, PA near his AA community.
With lots of love,
Friends & Family of Wally
///
A full update is copied below for friends & family:
Wally’s condition and progress
As many of you know, Wally left for Costa Rica in April 2017 hoping to establish a home for himself there. Unfortunately Wally had suffered from at least two strokes in 2018, which almost cost him his life and surely drastically changed his plans. Many of you have expressed your support to Wally at that difficult time, for which he is deeply grateful. His closest family – Jeannine and Bob Dineen – immensely helped with Wally’s recovery in Costa Rica from the strokes through crucial financial support for emergency treatment and rehabilitation therapy and making other important loving arrangements. This allowed Wally to achieve critical initial improvement and to be able to make a journey from Costa Rica to Newark. In early October we responded to Wally’s sister Maureen’s heartfelt and urgent request by offering our home – a private room with bath in the attic and our living room with the TV - to share with Wally during the initial steps in his transition to a life in the US and to help evaluate his condition and determine the needs for a full recovery.
Wally and Maureen arrived to our home in Hightstown on October 17. Though it was communicated to Wally and to us that someone would be accompanying him during the trip, he arrived by himself and was transferred from the aircraft through the customs in a wheelchair. The wheelchair was a good arrangement made by his Costa Rican caregivers, given his physical condition and little experience with international travel. Needless to say, Wally was very happy to be back to the US and especially to be met by Maureen after the ordeal of passing through the US customs.
Meeting Wally at our home was a very special moment. We were happy to see him smiling broadly although looking quit pale and much skinnier than we remembered him. Great thing is that Wally has good appetite and seems slowly regaining his strength, and hopefully will be adding some needed pounds soon. He enjoys American food, which he missed a lot, such as hamburgers, tuna salad, steak, hot dogs, bagels, croissants, ice-cream, Oreo cookies, glazed donuts, orange juice etc. He is not big on salads or fruits, except for bananas):
Wally can walk relatively short distances with the support of a cane or a person. His right arm and hand are getting stronger and more usable – he can use a fork to eat solid food. The left hand and arm are still mostly useless. The left leg is also still weak and makes it is difficult for Wally to walk up and down the stairs without assistance (unfortunately a feature of our century old house – it has lots of stairs). Wally is eager to walk in the backyard or with Mike at the nearby park, however to achieve further progress with the left side functionality we believe would require some professional physical therapy.
We were very pleased to see that most cognitive functions (speech, memory, ability to read, write, etc) have considerably improved since we saw Wally on a video sent from Costa Rica in early September. The therapy he received there really helped him a lot in this regard. He speaks very clearly and has better short-term memory than both of us (: He likes reading books and newspapers and watching TV, especially sports. What is still to be regained is the better ability to distinguish numbers, to write and to use electronic devices, such as phone (dialing and texting, for example), to navigate the Internet and its applications, etc. But this is often challenging for anyone.
Improvement in Wally’s emotional wellbeing is as important as his physical recovery. He is trying to keep positive outlook and is very kind and incredibly grateful to his family and friends. He openly acknowledges that he felt very depressed (and even was thinking of taking his own life) in Costa Rica, especially when health issues became so overwhelming that it would be impossible for him to make it through if not for the love and support of his family and friends. At this time Wally has more good moments, especially when friends and family come to visit. It was fantastic for him to see Don Holloway, and Jim Vinn who visited him as well as other friends. A big highlight happened on October 26th. Maureen brought Wally to Yardley to meet many of his friends, which was very a heartwarming experience for him.
Some Practical Matters and Most Urgent Needs
Wally’s Access to Pension/Bank Accounts/Phone
Unfortunately due to some longer-term memory lapses, Wally has forgotten a lot of details and information needed for restoring his access to important electronically managed tools, such as email, pension account, his phone, pins to access his Costa Rica account and such. Without this knowledge of the access information, it’s been challenging to authenticate Wally’s identity for the banks and Social Security Administration via Internet or on the phone.
In spite of some difficulties, since his return, Wally’s US-based presence is being gradually restored. Mike helped with opening a new bank account, and visiting the Social Security Administration office in Trenton, where Wally’s identity was authenticated and as a result, Wally just received a letter from SSA that his pension, starting around November 2, will be deposited to his new BoA account. Mike is also trying to help Wally to restore access to his Costa Rican account by assisting with written communication with the CR bank.
Other good news is that we successfully helped Wally to sign-up for a Consumer Cellular phone and Internet/data/text service, so he will have a new phone number and a SIM card within several days. We will share his new contact information as soon as it is available.
Health and Health Care Concerns
Unfortunately Wally does not have any diagnostically helpful medical records from the Costa Rican medical and therapy facilities, such as test results (e.g. MRI, blood), doctors and therapist notes, etc. which makes it difficult to understand specifically his past and current medical condition and needs in professional medical help. However, as a stroke survivor, he clearly needs regular doctor’s observation, blood pressure monitoring and specific medication. In the past he was taking Atenolol, which in the US requires doctor’s prescription (this was available as an over-the-counter drug in Costa Rica). However we believe that first of all Wally needs a doctor’s examination and possibly some tests to assess his current condition specifically and to prescribe the relevant medication.
As Wally initially did not plan to return to the US in the foreseen future, unfortunately he had cancelled Medicare Part B, which covers doctors’ visits and therapy. The Social Security Office explained that he would be able to apply for Medicare part B only on January 1, 2019, when the new enrollment cycle begins, and that he will be eligible for coverage only from July 1, 2019. At this time he has only Medicare Part A, which covers hospitalization.
We feel obliged to flag to Wally’s family and friends, that unfortunately in the situation of a potential high blood pressure spike or any other health crisis the only option that Wally has at this time is the emergency room and hospitalization.
Currently, Wally also doesn’t have access to physical therapy, which we believe would be very useful for further improvement of his left arm and leg functionality and ultimately to achieving a more independent life.
Finally, based on our observation, some, even just once-a-month psychological counseling and possibly, with a doctor’s determination, a prescription of anti-anxiety/depression medication could also make a difference in his full re-adaptation and recovery.
We love Wally and do our best to assist him. Our assessment indicates that in order to reach fuller recovery and to prevent a risk of another stroke or other serious health crisis, Wally needs access to doctors, therapy and medication. To our deep regret, it is beyond our means to provide these.
Housing, Everyday Care and Preparing for Independent Living
From housing perspective, Wally needs some simple and ideally a furnished place – a private room or a small apartment - with easy access, preferably without or with very few steps, and some walking area nearby. It would be fantastic if the place had a TV. Wally would need some help with setting up the basic services, and setting up electric/water and other utilities accounts, unless they are included in the rent.
It is important to mention that at this time he still needs assistance with everyday needs – from getting dressed, showering, shaving, taking a walk, to providing food, cleaning, laundry, clothes, etc.
It could be that a family member or a friend could live with Wally or close enough to be able to assist on a daily basis, especially in the forthcoming months. It is also possible that a collective of family members and friends could put together their coordinated efforts and establish a schedule for helping him on different days of the week.
Should a solution is found regarding therapy and doctors visits, scheduling and transportation help would be required.
This fund is to support his urgent transition home, pay for medical care before my Medicare kicks back in (July 2019), support physical therapy and find a place to live in Bucks County, PA near his AA community.
With lots of love,
Friends & Family of Wally
///
A full update is copied below for friends & family:
Wally’s condition and progress
As many of you know, Wally left for Costa Rica in April 2017 hoping to establish a home for himself there. Unfortunately Wally had suffered from at least two strokes in 2018, which almost cost him his life and surely drastically changed his plans. Many of you have expressed your support to Wally at that difficult time, for which he is deeply grateful. His closest family – Jeannine and Bob Dineen – immensely helped with Wally’s recovery in Costa Rica from the strokes through crucial financial support for emergency treatment and rehabilitation therapy and making other important loving arrangements. This allowed Wally to achieve critical initial improvement and to be able to make a journey from Costa Rica to Newark. In early October we responded to Wally’s sister Maureen’s heartfelt and urgent request by offering our home – a private room with bath in the attic and our living room with the TV - to share with Wally during the initial steps in his transition to a life in the US and to help evaluate his condition and determine the needs for a full recovery.
Wally and Maureen arrived to our home in Hightstown on October 17. Though it was communicated to Wally and to us that someone would be accompanying him during the trip, he arrived by himself and was transferred from the aircraft through the customs in a wheelchair. The wheelchair was a good arrangement made by his Costa Rican caregivers, given his physical condition and little experience with international travel. Needless to say, Wally was very happy to be back to the US and especially to be met by Maureen after the ordeal of passing through the US customs.
Meeting Wally at our home was a very special moment. We were happy to see him smiling broadly although looking quit pale and much skinnier than we remembered him. Great thing is that Wally has good appetite and seems slowly regaining his strength, and hopefully will be adding some needed pounds soon. He enjoys American food, which he missed a lot, such as hamburgers, tuna salad, steak, hot dogs, bagels, croissants, ice-cream, Oreo cookies, glazed donuts, orange juice etc. He is not big on salads or fruits, except for bananas):
Wally can walk relatively short distances with the support of a cane or a person. His right arm and hand are getting stronger and more usable – he can use a fork to eat solid food. The left hand and arm are still mostly useless. The left leg is also still weak and makes it is difficult for Wally to walk up and down the stairs without assistance (unfortunately a feature of our century old house – it has lots of stairs). Wally is eager to walk in the backyard or with Mike at the nearby park, however to achieve further progress with the left side functionality we believe would require some professional physical therapy.
We were very pleased to see that most cognitive functions (speech, memory, ability to read, write, etc) have considerably improved since we saw Wally on a video sent from Costa Rica in early September. The therapy he received there really helped him a lot in this regard. He speaks very clearly and has better short-term memory than both of us (: He likes reading books and newspapers and watching TV, especially sports. What is still to be regained is the better ability to distinguish numbers, to write and to use electronic devices, such as phone (dialing and texting, for example), to navigate the Internet and its applications, etc. But this is often challenging for anyone.
Improvement in Wally’s emotional wellbeing is as important as his physical recovery. He is trying to keep positive outlook and is very kind and incredibly grateful to his family and friends. He openly acknowledges that he felt very depressed (and even was thinking of taking his own life) in Costa Rica, especially when health issues became so overwhelming that it would be impossible for him to make it through if not for the love and support of his family and friends. At this time Wally has more good moments, especially when friends and family come to visit. It was fantastic for him to see Don Holloway, and Jim Vinn who visited him as well as other friends. A big highlight happened on October 26th. Maureen brought Wally to Yardley to meet many of his friends, which was very a heartwarming experience for him.
Some Practical Matters and Most Urgent Needs
Wally’s Access to Pension/Bank Accounts/Phone
Unfortunately due to some longer-term memory lapses, Wally has forgotten a lot of details and information needed for restoring his access to important electronically managed tools, such as email, pension account, his phone, pins to access his Costa Rica account and such. Without this knowledge of the access information, it’s been challenging to authenticate Wally’s identity for the banks and Social Security Administration via Internet or on the phone.
In spite of some difficulties, since his return, Wally’s US-based presence is being gradually restored. Mike helped with opening a new bank account, and visiting the Social Security Administration office in Trenton, where Wally’s identity was authenticated and as a result, Wally just received a letter from SSA that his pension, starting around November 2, will be deposited to his new BoA account. Mike is also trying to help Wally to restore access to his Costa Rican account by assisting with written communication with the CR bank.
Other good news is that we successfully helped Wally to sign-up for a Consumer Cellular phone and Internet/data/text service, so he will have a new phone number and a SIM card within several days. We will share his new contact information as soon as it is available.
Health and Health Care Concerns
Unfortunately Wally does not have any diagnostically helpful medical records from the Costa Rican medical and therapy facilities, such as test results (e.g. MRI, blood), doctors and therapist notes, etc. which makes it difficult to understand specifically his past and current medical condition and needs in professional medical help. However, as a stroke survivor, he clearly needs regular doctor’s observation, blood pressure monitoring and specific medication. In the past he was taking Atenolol, which in the US requires doctor’s prescription (this was available as an over-the-counter drug in Costa Rica). However we believe that first of all Wally needs a doctor’s examination and possibly some tests to assess his current condition specifically and to prescribe the relevant medication.
As Wally initially did not plan to return to the US in the foreseen future, unfortunately he had cancelled Medicare Part B, which covers doctors’ visits and therapy. The Social Security Office explained that he would be able to apply for Medicare part B only on January 1, 2019, when the new enrollment cycle begins, and that he will be eligible for coverage only from July 1, 2019. At this time he has only Medicare Part A, which covers hospitalization.
We feel obliged to flag to Wally’s family and friends, that unfortunately in the situation of a potential high blood pressure spike or any other health crisis the only option that Wally has at this time is the emergency room and hospitalization.
Currently, Wally also doesn’t have access to physical therapy, which we believe would be very useful for further improvement of his left arm and leg functionality and ultimately to achieving a more independent life.
Finally, based on our observation, some, even just once-a-month psychological counseling and possibly, with a doctor’s determination, a prescription of anti-anxiety/depression medication could also make a difference in his full re-adaptation and recovery.
We love Wally and do our best to assist him. Our assessment indicates that in order to reach fuller recovery and to prevent a risk of another stroke or other serious health crisis, Wally needs access to doctors, therapy and medication. To our deep regret, it is beyond our means to provide these.
Housing, Everyday Care and Preparing for Independent Living
From housing perspective, Wally needs some simple and ideally a furnished place – a private room or a small apartment - with easy access, preferably without or with very few steps, and some walking area nearby. It would be fantastic if the place had a TV. Wally would need some help with setting up the basic services, and setting up electric/water and other utilities accounts, unless they are included in the rent.
It is important to mention that at this time he still needs assistance with everyday needs – from getting dressed, showering, shaving, taking a walk, to providing food, cleaning, laundry, clothes, etc.
It could be that a family member or a friend could live with Wally or close enough to be able to assist on a daily basis, especially in the forthcoming months. It is also possible that a collective of family members and friends could put together their coordinated efforts and establish a schedule for helping him on different days of the week.
Should a solution is found regarding therapy and doctors visits, scheduling and transportation help would be required.
Co-organizers (6)
Dorothy Vanderbeck
Organizer
Hightstown, NJ
Maureen Vanderbeck
Beneficiary
Michael Purchia
Co-organizer
Greg Faughnan
Co-organizer
Joseph Vanderbeck
Co-organizer
Rick Von Ohlen
Co-organizer