
Help Brandon with rent, bills, and food
Donation protected
Well, I would like to start from the beginning and give a little information about myself and who I am. My name is Brandon Adelino, I am 28 years old, for the last ten years of my life, I have lived with my father, Carlos. At that time, I was very restricted to what I was able to do in terms of work because I weighed around 435 lbs by graduation in 2010 from high school. My father had Renal Kidney Failure and was on dialysis, as well as Diabetic Retinopathy. We had a living arrangement that I would remain at home to help him around the house and drive him to doctors and dialysis appointments and in return, he would cover the bills with his disability check. I managed the bills and helped with groceries with my state-issued food stamps. I quickly learned the ins and outs of managing money to make things last, to make sure we had food and gas for the car as well as seeing to the bills and rent. In 2014, I was diagnosed with Lymphedema in both of my legs which caused them to swell to unbelievable sizes. My right leg was 109 cm around the calf and the left was 96 cm. For someone who was already very obese for my age, this really shut down all of my ability to be active. Over the next few years, I put on a lot more weight, reaching up to my highest weight of 620 lbs. At that time, even the most basic functions of life were difficult; everything from putting on socks to tying shoes was a workout. I needed change not just for me but for those around me. Through long hard work and the drive to be better, I started working on myself, so I came up with a plan and executed that plan. In 2018, I worked with Dr. Richard Greco and had a Gastric Sleeve surgery done. I was able to lose 50 lbs pre-surgery to qualify for the surgery. I continued to work hard to lose 160 lbs in the first 8 months post-surgery. By 2020, I dropped all the way down to 300 lbs, resulting in a loss of over half of my body weight.
It took a lot to make this happen but gaining my life back was worth every second, and while I normally keep to myself and don't share much, I'm extremely proud of myself for what I've accomplished. I've finally been able to start looking forward to living and working and I’ve been looking into going back to school to better my future as well. With all of this though, came complications. I was getting much better, but my father was on a steady decline with many hospital visits and many close calls which resulted in him needing more attention and care at home. He needed a walker, and assistance with food and chores around the house much more than he had before. At a time where I was finally able to do things for myself and go out to start working I couldn't. I remained at home to help him with anything and everything I could. In September 2020, he had a big fall, I sent him to the ER and he was ok but began to have extreme difficulty walking even with his walker. He was admitted to rehab where he ended up staying from October to the present. While there, it was difficult for his body to regain strength, and there were many trips from rehab to the hospital and back; his body was shutting down on him. A few weeks ago I received a call, that one of his recent weekly COVID-19 tests came back positive and he was rushed to the hospital. He fought for a little over a week, until after many phone calls and discussions, we decided to transition to palliative care for him to be comfortable as he lived out the last few days of his life. My dad passed away on January 29, 2021 (Obituary). I am now home, looking to move forward while remembering all the good times as I start my journey into living my life, something I knew he always wanted for me. This all brings me here, I want to stay at my home and am in the transition of working on getting all the bills and paperwork transferred into my name. The problem is that I don't have a job yet and I don't have his income to help anymore. Anything I receive from this Fundraiser would directly assist with my paying of bills and rent and making sure I have food for the next few months as I figure out where to start. It's a moment in my life that has two massive feelings on both ends of the spectrum. One being grief and mourning of the loss of my father, but in that moment, sparks of excitement to finally live my life out and push forward to my future and I know he would be proud. Thank you everyone for your time and help. <3 Brandon


Organizer
Brandon Adelino
Organizer
Old Bridge Township, NJ