Help Ana Live with ALS

Hi, I’m Rebekka and I’m fundraising for my dear friend Ana Doonan (Aguilar) She was recently diagnosed with ALS and the disease has progressed rapidly. We are hoping to raise funds to help her live as comfortably as possible.

Ana’s Story:

Ana arrived in the USA from Venezuela for the first time in 1998 and has been a shining light ever since.

After completing two masters programs (at CMU and GVSU) in non-profit administration, Ana jumped right in to the non-profit world, giving back to the West Michigan community while helping to support her family back home in Venezuela. She is a tireless advocate for social justice and impact, working quietly behind the scenes to positively impact the community around her.

She has helped raise over $10 million to support several causes: low-income housing, minority communities, small business ownership, funds for children, and most recently, helped fundraise for others to access higher education.

She believes that “the biggest footprint we can leave in this world is what we do to make the lives of others better and fruitful.”

Earlier this year, Ana started not feeling well. After her exhausting trip to Venezuela to say goodbye to her beloved father, Ana continued not feeling well and the pain persisted. At first, she thought it was due to her grief, the sleepless nights and long travel days. As the days went by, her symptoms did not improve. Sadly, in spring 2022, Ana was diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, a nervous system disease that weakens muscles and impacts physical function. There is no cure for ALS, it is a terminal disease.

Since her diagnosis her symptoms have progressed pretty quickly. She is in a lot of pain and discomfort due to spasms in her back and legs. Some days it is difficult for her to talk or text people. She is now at the point where she needs help with basic daily tasks.

Ana is a woman of lots of faith and finds lots of comfort, grace and strength in God during this ALS journey. We ask that you keep her, her family, friends and care providers in your thoughts and prayers.

All funds raised will help Ana and her husband Marc make their home wheelchair accessible and pay for nursing help at home. Marc has been trying to juggle working full time to maintain income for living and being a full-time caregiver.

Even if you have never met Ana, a small donation helps. She has been raising money to help strangers her entire career, we are hoping that the world does the same for her.

We are not capping the fundraising on this gofundme. Any donations over expenses incurred will be donated to the ALS foundation.