Help Lori Urbina's Family During this Health Crisis

Hi, my name is Lisa Bishop and I have worked with Lori Urbina for 10 years at Aptos Middle School. Lori is a solid pillar of our community working with so many students, faculty, administrators and families. She is one of the most kind and caring educators I have ever known. I hope you can donate to this family who really needs our support right now. Here is their story:

"Back in July of 2023, my partner was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disease called dermatomyositis. After starting traditional treatment medications, he improved in some ways. However, he never got into or close to a remission. By September, he could no longer drive or continue to work in the job that he loves. He slowly had to give up doing the things that he loves like gardening, going on hikes, driving trips, attending baseball games, running errands, and neighborhood walks.

This past January, it became apparent that this was a huge flare of his disease and that he was not responding to any of the treatments. That month also marked the last time that he was able to stand up and walk independently.

On March 18th, he was hospitalized for the third time this year. During this hospitalization, he was in the ICU for two weeks. After 52 days in the hospital, he is just easing into some rehabilitation. He has begun treatment with chemotherapy medication in addition to the other immunosuppressants. The hope is remission. As you can imagine, this is life altering for us.

My husband has not been home since February. I too have not been able to work much during this very scary phase of our lives. Most of this year he has been in the hospital, and will continue to be. Which means he will continue to be away from me, family, friends, work and the life he had. Having to navigate all that this has brought upon me– especially advocating within the medical/healthcare system– is overwhelming and often an impossible task. I was told weeks ago that this is a marathon. I am not sure where we are in that, but I know it is a very, very long road ahead. "

Thank you Aptos Community. We know that you care.