As friends/family of Ian and Emily Jones, we are asking for donations to help offset the expenses associated with an unexpected brain surgery that Emily had to undergo recently. Emily was admitted in Philadelphia recently due to complications of hydrocephalus. Her Fiance, Ian, is a career Firefighter/EMT for the Anne Arundel County Fire Department. While he has been able to get his shifts covered, Emily has very little paid leave left that she can use for her long road to recovery.

Emily has been suffering from hydrocephalus for the last 15 years. To date, Emily has had 18 brain surgeries (3 of which have occurred in the past 10 days). Emily was born with a condition called Dandy Walker Malformation. Essentially, she has a large cyst in the back of her brain that sits on top of her brain stem. This stimulates an overproduction of cerebral spinal fluid which contributes to the cause of hydrocephalus. She has been battling this terrible, incurable condition for years now. Most recently, Emily was struggling with dizziness, nausea and intense head pressure. After unsuccessful interventions at her primary neurologists, she was transferred to Philadelphia where she had multiple revisions to her shunt. Unfortunately, she now has a long road ahead of her for recovery.

To those that know Emily, she is the most wonderful, caring and loving person. She goes above and beyond for everyone at a moments notice. She spends her days helping little kids with their own challenges while she is battling her own pain every single day. She is simply a warrior.

Emily and Ian just purchased a new house and have a wedding coming up in August. The loss of income while she is in recovery, as well as the costs for Ian to be by her side throughout this ordeal, is undesirable stress that we have the ability to help with. There are some things in life that we just can't fix, while there are opportunities such as this that we can.

These two are not the individuals to ask for assistance. But in life, we all need help when we are knocked down. Any little bit can go a long way. Any additional funds that are not used will be donated to a hydrocephalus research organization of their choice.