Help Jon provide care for his ailing Father...

Hi, everyone. I've talked about this before, and it still hurts every day. I haven't seen nor talked to anyone in my immediate family for almost 10 years. My disability came across to them as being weak, and they didn't want to be associated with someone, especially blood, in that manner. I made many attempts to bridge the large, large gap to explain what I was going through and what I needed. That simply turned into me being cast aside from not only my father, mother, and brother, but the entire sides of both families.

On Thursday, April 10th, I had an audition with the Lake Erie Crushers up in Avon, OH. I had been their PA Announcer for a short while in 2019 to fill in late in the summer for someone they had let go. I got to Cleveland early and drove around to take in the environment that I grew to love, where I met the love of my life, and the place that I truly consider home, even though I was born in New Jersey. One thing I wasn't sure I was going to do was drive down Dorland Ave, where I spent my entire childhood and teenage years as I made my way through the Berea City School District and graduated at the now-gone Berea High School. A lot of you that might be reading this discovered who I was, whether it was sports, classes, band, or whatever means, but the fact that we've maintained relationships all these years without actually meeting or getting together speaks volumes about your own character and why I cherish the relationship that we have.

As I drove down and got close to my house, my father was walking down the driveway with their new dog. I kept going to the end of the street, and when I got to the top, I had two decisions: 1. Just turn around and drive by, or 2. Be the human being that I've become and stop. One thing though, that was brought to my attention from two other family members that allowed me into their lives again, is that my father is going into a pretty deep stage of dementia. The way that they talked about it, they made it sound like he was repetitive and that it "seemed" he was going into that kind of life. If anyone knows my family, it's me, and I can tell you that they are NOT doing the things for their husband, father, brother, and uncle that should be done. So when I turned around, I took a deep breath, put my foot on the brake, rolled down the window, and said, "Hi Dad." He looked at me, and I'm not sure he knew who I was immediately, but I have never seen my father look so weak and unpolished from a physical standpoint. We talked for a minute as he leaned on my window, and I could immediately tell it was worse than what my cousins had told me. I started to speak on how hurt I've been and how I missed them, and I wasn't embarrassed to cry. As I did, I opened up my door, got out, and as my father reached out for a handshake, I pushed his hand away and hugged him. We talked more, and as the conversation went on, it was painful. He could remember certain things, but not about the conversation itself, repeating questions, asking questions to things I had already said, etc. One thing that happened though, is I made my father laugh the way I used to when things weren't so tumultuous. I brought up Laurel and Hardy, his absolute favorite, and started acting and quoting some of my personal favorite scenes, and he just laughed hysterically. Living with my mother and brother, I don't feel he has been able to laugh like that in a really, really long time. After a few more words, I had to go because my audition time was coming up. He reached out to shake my hand again, I again pushed it aside and hugged him and told him I loved him. The thing that truly concerns me is that he may have forgotten that whole interaction happened by the time he got back from his walk, and if he DID mention it, my mother or brother wouldn't have believed him.

My reason behind this GoFundMe is basically to try to give him the things that can help him live the most healthy lifestyle with things that keep his cognitive abilities as strong as they can be at this point. At some point, when the symptoms were clear, someone in the family dropped the ball on trying to nip it in the bud early, and now it's to a point, at least from what I saw, that the path he's on is a bad one, and even though he was a part of my expulsion from the family, my heart still reaches for them, and if anyone is actually going to step up and try to help, it's going to be me.

I'm asking all of you, in the most gracious way I can, to help Adrian and I put together money so that we can buy him things that can help him thrive, assist him with the challenges he's going through, try to create normalcy, and see if any of that can at least put a band-aid on a wound that has gotten way too deep. Some of the things off the bat are music compilations from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. Old comedy from when he was a kid that he passed along to my brother and me. Old Universal Studio Horror movies, i.e., Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolfman, The Mummy. Sports-related material, i.e., books about the Browns, Guardians/Indians, Cavaliers. Cooking material. (He always claimed everything that he bought and/or made was gourmet, so run with that!!) Also, things like puzzles, brain teasers, solo games, and other things that stimulate cognitive ability.

My family relationship is fractured, hence why my last name is Natale, and no longer Cupo. However, as I mentioned up top, there is a very strong human element in my heart, and I don't care too much to see people who suffer, especially someone on the mental side, because it's what I go through on a daily basis.

I thank you all so, so much and please feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have.