
Help Joel Roll
Donation protected
Please meet Joel Fariñas Fallas, age 15, and his dad Freddy, a dear Costa Rican friend. I spent 6 weeks this past winter studying Spanish with this amazing professor and never once heard about his struggles to care for his son Joel, a victim of severe muscular dystrophy. Freddy has never asked for anything from me, EVER, and he only shared this information long after I had returned to the US and we continued our friendship with on-line Spanish lessons. It turns out that all of Freddy’s income, beyond his own basic needs, goes to medical care and maintaining a home for his son and his mother, Freddy’s former wife. And unfortunately, medical care in Costa Rica, while covering the basics for most citizens, is as expensive as in the USA when it comes to anything extra. And Joel needs extra, specifically one rather expensive custom-built orthopedic wheel chair.
Joel’s life expectancy is poor, averaging about 26 years of age, but that could be improved significantly with proper care and proper assistance devices to protect his body and improve his breathing, in particular, a wheelchair that is specifically built around his personal measurements. This disease makes it impossible for Joel to sit upright and to reposition himself on his own, and that makes prevention of bedsores and other injuries very difficult without a properly fit, custom chair. Proper posture will become increasingly vital for effective breathing as the years go by and the disease progresses.
Freddy and I were chatting during our Spanish Class, where we discuss anything and everything, when he finally opened up to my questions about kids. I learned that he had lost his first child, a daughter, who died at age 3 from a brain malformation. I then learned that he has been trying to find a way to get Joel this device for several years. But salaries in Costa Rica are a fraction of what they would be here, and yet living expenses are still pretty high, especially for two households. So despite working 10 hours a day, six days a week at two different language schools, this $5000 purchase has remained out of his reach. So I decided to try and help with this campaign.
This man has shouldered these terrible burdens like a true hero, keeping a beautifully positive view of life that he radiates in his classes and in his life in general – check out the photos and the You-Tube Spanish class link below. He spends every single Sunday entirely with his son, forgoing many other possible social activities that a relatively young, single man might rather do.
This purchase would greatly expand the places that Professor Farinas can share with his son for the time they will have left together. Please consider chipping in a bit of cash, even during these tough times, to have a profoundly positive impact on the lives of two very deserving people. You will all see the transparent process of purchasing this chair and receive follow up on the impact it has for Joel and Freddy. Thank you for reading.


Joel’s life expectancy is poor, averaging about 26 years of age, but that could be improved significantly with proper care and proper assistance devices to protect his body and improve his breathing, in particular, a wheelchair that is specifically built around his personal measurements. This disease makes it impossible for Joel to sit upright and to reposition himself on his own, and that makes prevention of bedsores and other injuries very difficult without a properly fit, custom chair. Proper posture will become increasingly vital for effective breathing as the years go by and the disease progresses.
Freddy and I were chatting during our Spanish Class, where we discuss anything and everything, when he finally opened up to my questions about kids. I learned that he had lost his first child, a daughter, who died at age 3 from a brain malformation. I then learned that he has been trying to find a way to get Joel this device for several years. But salaries in Costa Rica are a fraction of what they would be here, and yet living expenses are still pretty high, especially for two households. So despite working 10 hours a day, six days a week at two different language schools, this $5000 purchase has remained out of his reach. So I decided to try and help with this campaign.
This man has shouldered these terrible burdens like a true hero, keeping a beautifully positive view of life that he radiates in his classes and in his life in general – check out the photos and the You-Tube Spanish class link below. He spends every single Sunday entirely with his son, forgoing many other possible social activities that a relatively young, single man might rather do.
This purchase would greatly expand the places that Professor Farinas can share with his son for the time they will have left together. Please consider chipping in a bit of cash, even during these tough times, to have a profoundly positive impact on the lives of two very deserving people. You will all see the transparent process of purchasing this chair and receive follow up on the impact it has for Joel and Freddy. Thank you for reading.





Organizer
Debi and John Corso
Organizer
Bend, OR