This past Memorial Day weekend of 2024, I, Rafael Paiva, was seriously injured in a motorcycle accident. I was enjoying a lovely cruise through the backroads of New York and Connecticut when out of nowhere, I was t-boned by an inexperienced driver failing to stop at a yield. Thankfully, ambulance services arrived quickly and rushed me to the hospital in Waterbury, and then again rushed to a higher trauma level hospital in New Haven. Although I’m safe and stable at home, I am facing life-altering decisions.

I am facing possible foot amputation, which could drastically change the way of life for me and my family. Being the sole income earner for my family, it has been my responsibility to provide for my wife and children aged 3, 5, and 7. With this accident leaving me on a long road to recovery, if at all possible without amputation, my future is uncertain on how I will be providing for everyone relying on me.

I have been working for the last 11 years as a carpenter in the city of New York, working heavy construction to be able to afford buying a house for my family to call a home. As much as it pains me to do this because I am a very prideful man who has always been able to stand on his own two feet, unfortunately now I physically cannot. So for the good of my family, I am here asking for any donations or contributions to help alleviate the financial burden these unfortunate circumstances have bestowed upon me.