Help Brandon Breathe Easy Again

I am the oldest daughter of Brandon Anderson, a single father in southern Utah. I am raising money for him as he is experiencing heath issues that he needs surgery for. Last year he was diagnosed with Unilateral diaphragmatic paralysis. This causes one side of his diaphragm to not work properly, making it so he cannot breathe correctly and fully.

This severely impacts his quality of life. While he has two adult daughters now, he still has our 12 year old little sister who he works hard to support. He would like to continue to do fun things with her in her youth. They love to go to the lake together, go camping, take road trips, go hiking, bike rides, and more. These are all things he also did with me and my other sister when we were young, that we both have fond memories of. We would love to see our youngest sister also have as much fun with our dad as we did. He would be able to do these things so much easier if he could get the medical attention he needs.

He runs a mechanic shop by himself to support their life, and while this has been good for years now, he is finding it hard to do this physically demanding job on his own. His condition causes shortness of breath, fatigue, and chest discomfort.

At his shop he prides himself on his good customer service, as well as extremely good prices compared to other places in town. Since he has no employees, he can give his customers a better deal. He does this on purpose, to give the community an affordable option when all else fails.

Over the years he has always been a great helping hand in my life. When there is an issue with my car, he will go where I am and take care of it. If I need a new one, he finds the best deal. If I need help moving, he's the first person there with a trailer. If I need a place to stay, the door is open. If I just need someone to talk to, he answers the phone. He taught me to be financially savvy, independent, and a critical thinker. All qualities that I take great pride in as a young woman navigating adulthood. If I did not have his influence, my life would be much different.

This week he was almost brought to tears, because I asked him to help me refinish some furniture. He was sad that he could not do it for me with everything he has going on. I was confused at first, the furniture was not that important to me nor was it an emergency. But he likes to be the person that helps everyone, and he is incredibly frustrated when he cannot. He is also a man raised to be strong, he struggles to express his emotions without feeling judged or weak. In that moment I did not see him as weak, I saw him as someone trying his best in a time when odds seem stacked against him.

I write all of this to humbly ask for help, as I know he might be too independent to do so on his own. Due to his status as self employed, he cannot justify the cost of health insurance for himself and he must pay for this surgery out of pocket.

Anything helps, and even if you cannot donate, thank you for reading!

Callie