Meet Luis Delgado Dominguez and Claudia Santibañez, residing in the city of Guadalajara in Jalisco, Mexico. They have been married for more than three decades and have three beautiful daughters. They have spent their lives working hard for everything that they have, and going above and beyond to provide their daughters with everything they needed to be successful in life. Never before in their journey together have they turned to strangers for help and support, but that journey changed dramatically just weeks ago, when Luis was rushed to the hospital. They could not possibly have imagined the hardship they were about to face.

Gangrene. Sepsis. Emergency surgery.

Luis had had an anal fissure— an incredibly common malady, effecting about 10% of people at some point in their life. Luis didn’t know what the cause of his pain was— a hemorrhoid maybe? It happens. They’re common. Who wants to go to a doctor for that kind of pain? Luis does not have health insurance, so he waited and hoped, but the pain got worse instead of better. Unknown to Luis, his fissure had become infected, he had developed gangrene, and he was level 4 septic, just days, if not hours, from death, when he finally arrived at the hospital.

Upon his arrival at the hospital Luis was rushed to emergency surgery, which fortunately stabilized him, but it was only the beginning. After a day of rest, he received a second surgery to remove the remaining affected tissue. Less than 24 hours later, Luis was discharged from the hospital. Not because it was safe for him to go home, but because his family could not afford for him to stay any longer. They couldn’t afford the procedures that had already taken place, or the medication and supplies that he would need for his recovery, but they would have to find a way. The doctors told them it would be at least 6 months before he would make a full recovery, and a full recovery was not guaranteed.

Luis was now a patient, and Claudia his full-time nurse. Claudia has no training as a nurse, but she is a strong woman who has spent her life caring for others, and she was up to the task. For the last 6 weeks, Claudia has been working tirelessly to care for Luis, her chico as she refers to him, with the help of their oldest daughter, Ariadna. Claudia says that she is grateful to God for giving her the valor to take care of her husband, as not all people would be able to do the things she has done. Luis has a very large, open wound, that must be cleaned 5-7 times a day. He needs assistance to walk, to bathe, the use the bathroom, and he belongs in a hospital with full time, expert care. What he has is Claudia, an amazing, determined woman, who will do whatever it takes to save him. She hasn’t slept for more than 3 hours straight since that night in February. She wears a mask and gloves and a gown when she enters their bedroom that is now serving as a hospital room.

The first weekend after Luis returned home, his temperature spiked. Claudia called the doctor for advice, and she got him through. The next weekend Luis had terrible diarrhea, further increasing his risk of infection and requiring even more cleaning and disinfecting. The following weekend he needed a blood transfusion, and ended up with a horrible stomach infection, leading to yet another emergency surgery. His body was losing blood, and the doctors didn't know why or how. Luis had to have another emergency surgery, this time on his stomach. He was hospitalized for a week, and has now returned home once more, but his life remains in grave danger. He now has a second open wound which must be cleaned daily, and if the fever returns, he must be rushed back to the hospital.

Claudia’s chico might not make it, but she will not give up. Meanwhile, as they fight, the bills pile up.

Every dollar they receive will go toward paying their hospital bills, to pay for Luis's medications, and will allow Luis to spend more time in a hospital where he can receive the care that he so badly needs. Luis is blessed to have his loving wife, Claudia, and daughter, Ariadna, taking such good care of them, but he needs more. Please help Luis and his family save his life.

About me: My name is Ashlyn, I live in San Jose, California, and I met the Delgado-Santibañez family just over 2 years ago, in January of 2021. I wanted to improve my Spanish and went to a website with tutors from all over the world, and that is where I met Ariadna, daughter of Luis and Claudia. We became fast friends, and 6 months later I was headed to Guadalajara to visit her and her family for 10 days. I adopted Claudia as my Mama Clau, and she adopted me as her fourth daughter. Ariadna came to stay with me for a month later that same year, in November of 2021. Ariadna and Mama Clau are two of my best friends in the world-- more than that, we consider each other family. When Ariadna contacted me to let me know what was happening with her father I knew I had to try and help however I could. I reached out to my family members here in the US and we all pooled some money together to send right away, and they were incredibly grateful, but it was just a drop in the bucket. I've never done anything like this before but I'm just going to do my best. It is the least I can do to support my loved ones. Thank you so much for your help.