Help My Mom Relocate and Heal in LA!
Donation protected
Hi, my name is Alex and I am fundraising for my mom, Marilyn.
Just as a lot of kids feel: my mom amazes me. She is compassionate, deeply intelligent, and patient. She will take my calls at any hour, and support anything and everything I do no matter what.
My mom is also incredibly self-reliant, resilient, and hardworking. To put that into perspective: at 70, she was the top-selling server at her place of work, outselling servers half her age. She’s fast, motivated, sharp as hell, and the epitome of badass.
The pandemic of course, changed everything for everyone overnight. My mom, a restaurant worker like many, lost her job for a year. During that time, she sat in her room isolated, as she has been a tenant in a house of mostly strangers with no family or friends nearby. As you could imagine, she couldn’t wait to get back to work feel like herself again.
However, when she finally went back to work, there was an immediate obstacle. In her first few weeks, she struggled catching her breath while carrying trays of food and wine up and down flights of stairs. She would have to pause and sit down, or even call out, losing a lot of money, and tips. Finally in October 2021, after resting at home, she called me to let me know she was having trouble breathing. I immediately got in my car, drove to San Diego, and took her to the emergency room to get help.
Soon after she was diagnosed with having Bi-lateral Pulmonary Fibrosis and was also told she had blood clots in her lungs, resulting in pneumonia. This led to a 2-week hospital stay, and another month in an intensive rehabilitation facility. After many many doctors’ appointments, tests, and attempted treatments - they still are trying to determine what caused this and are unable to find a cure for her condition. At this point, what we do know is that her lungs simply don't produce enough oxygen on their own anymore. According to her doctors, she may have to live on oxygen for the rest of her life, barring some sort of miracle.
To put it briefly, I am devastated, and worried. Being dependent on an oxygen tank, means there is a possibility my mom will never be able to go back to her old work. Her new life will be full of medical expenses and require a lot of family support. As I am her only child and only remaining family - that responsibility falls solely on me.
For the past few months, I have been driving 3 hours each way, multiple times a week, to take care of her: transporting her to her to doctors’ appointments, getting her food, and refilling her prescriptions. I have put my entire life on pause due to the distance between us.
On top of that, because of Covid, a lot of disability claims are back logged, meaning it could take months for her to receive government assistance. That government assistance could be low, and not enough to sustain her making rent.
Here’s my goal right now: I want to move my mom to LA. I want her to be able to rent a room in a house that will be comfortable with her health situation. I want her to be close to me so I can take her to appointments with better, more accessible doctors, and so that myself and her community can have more access to her daily. I am deeply concerned that without some help, her housing, and health will be at stake. And time is a factor, too.
I am setting my goal at $7,500 to try and raise money for moving expenses for her relocation to Los Angles, and about 6-months rent so she can be comfortable and getting the care she needs while her disability settlement gets sorted out.
If you know me or know my mom - you know we are easily encapsulated in this very 90's photo above: free-spirited, silly, kind, boundless. I want her to feel that way again with my whole being.
I deeply believe in community efforts in times like these. People shouldn’t have to figure out these things alone, and I am so grateful to have access to platforms like this where that belief is a staple.
Thank you for taking the time to read my story, and thank you for considering donating. You have no idea how much it means to me, and will mean to my mom.
Thanks again,
Alex
Just as a lot of kids feel: my mom amazes me. She is compassionate, deeply intelligent, and patient. She will take my calls at any hour, and support anything and everything I do no matter what.
My mom is also incredibly self-reliant, resilient, and hardworking. To put that into perspective: at 70, she was the top-selling server at her place of work, outselling servers half her age. She’s fast, motivated, sharp as hell, and the epitome of badass.
The pandemic of course, changed everything for everyone overnight. My mom, a restaurant worker like many, lost her job for a year. During that time, she sat in her room isolated, as she has been a tenant in a house of mostly strangers with no family or friends nearby. As you could imagine, she couldn’t wait to get back to work feel like herself again.
However, when she finally went back to work, there was an immediate obstacle. In her first few weeks, she struggled catching her breath while carrying trays of food and wine up and down flights of stairs. She would have to pause and sit down, or even call out, losing a lot of money, and tips. Finally in October 2021, after resting at home, she called me to let me know she was having trouble breathing. I immediately got in my car, drove to San Diego, and took her to the emergency room to get help.
Soon after she was diagnosed with having Bi-lateral Pulmonary Fibrosis and was also told she had blood clots in her lungs, resulting in pneumonia. This led to a 2-week hospital stay, and another month in an intensive rehabilitation facility. After many many doctors’ appointments, tests, and attempted treatments - they still are trying to determine what caused this and are unable to find a cure for her condition. At this point, what we do know is that her lungs simply don't produce enough oxygen on their own anymore. According to her doctors, she may have to live on oxygen for the rest of her life, barring some sort of miracle.
To put it briefly, I am devastated, and worried. Being dependent on an oxygen tank, means there is a possibility my mom will never be able to go back to her old work. Her new life will be full of medical expenses and require a lot of family support. As I am her only child and only remaining family - that responsibility falls solely on me.
For the past few months, I have been driving 3 hours each way, multiple times a week, to take care of her: transporting her to her to doctors’ appointments, getting her food, and refilling her prescriptions. I have put my entire life on pause due to the distance between us.
On top of that, because of Covid, a lot of disability claims are back logged, meaning it could take months for her to receive government assistance. That government assistance could be low, and not enough to sustain her making rent.
Here’s my goal right now: I want to move my mom to LA. I want her to be able to rent a room in a house that will be comfortable with her health situation. I want her to be close to me so I can take her to appointments with better, more accessible doctors, and so that myself and her community can have more access to her daily. I am deeply concerned that without some help, her housing, and health will be at stake. And time is a factor, too.
I am setting my goal at $7,500 to try and raise money for moving expenses for her relocation to Los Angles, and about 6-months rent so she can be comfortable and getting the care she needs while her disability settlement gets sorted out.
If you know me or know my mom - you know we are easily encapsulated in this very 90's photo above: free-spirited, silly, kind, boundless. I want her to feel that way again with my whole being.
I deeply believe in community efforts in times like these. People shouldn’t have to figure out these things alone, and I am so grateful to have access to platforms like this where that belief is a staple.
Thank you for taking the time to read my story, and thank you for considering donating. You have no idea how much it means to me, and will mean to my mom.
Thanks again,
Alex
Organizer
Alex Stills
Organizer
Pasadena, CA