Help Bring Deanna Home ❤️

I’m writing this GoFundMe on behalf of my sister and brother-in-law, Deanna and Raymond Black. Many years ago, they made the difficult decision to leave their home in Long Beach, California, and move to Memphis, Tennessee, for work. What they hoped would be a fresh start quickly turned into years filled with unexpected challenges.

Over time, Deanna’s health began to decline. What started as a few concerns grew into multiple serious medical conditions that changed her life forever. She has been diagnosed with congestive heart failure, congestive heart disease, emphysema, lymphedema, and severe neuropathy in both legs — the latter ultimately leaving her unable to walk.

Today, Deanna is wheelchair-bound and spends all of her days at home. Her husband, Raymond, continues to work full-time, doing everything he can to provide and keep things afloat. But because of his income, they don’t qualify for many of the Medicare programs that could ease their burden.

They were able to hire someone wonderful to help care for Deanna while Raymond is at work, but after depleting most of their savings, they can now only afford care three days a week — and even that may soon become impossible to maintain. When no one is there during the day, Deanna cannot get up to take care of even basic daily activities. She must sit and wait until Raymond comes home for help with her most essential needs.

Through all of this, Deanna’s strength and spirit have never wavered. She keeps her sense of humor and her faith, even on the hardest days. But what she and Raymond want more than anything now is to come home — back to Long Beach, where family and lifelong friends can surround them with love and support.

Last year, they were able to purchase a wheelchair-accessible van, which will allow them to make the long drive back to California. However, their home in Long Beach needs several important modifications before Deanna can live there safely again — wheelchair ramps for both the front and back doors, and wider doorways so she can move freely and comfortably throughout the house.

This GoFundMe is being created to help with:

Ongoing in-home care for Deanna ($360 per week)

Home accessibility renovations in Long Beach so she can return safely (approximately $6,000)

Every donation — no matter the size — helps bring Deanna and Raymond one step closer to coming home, where they will finally have the support system they need.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for taking the time to read their story and for any help you can give to bring Deanna home.