Help reunite Michael's family

Summary

I have opened this Gofundme on behalf of Michael E. Paesch who is in dire need of financial assistance to support his son's medical examinations and be able to reunite his family. Michael is not able to open a Gofundme account on his own due to website restrictions in Aruba, requiring assistance in making one to improve his chances of receiving any form of help. 

Currently, his wife and child are in Colombia due to the medical examinations required for this son, and Michael is in Aruba trying to earn the funds needed to finance the examinations to allow his family to come back to Aruba. Due to the travelling between Colombia, Bogota and Aruba, and his son, Tyler, requiring on more medical exam in addition to the lodgings, food, baby clothing, doctor visits, etc. he would need approximately $ 4,000.

Below is his letter with all the background and him asking for any kind of financial help anyone can offer. We are counting with your support.

Letter for Aid

Dear Sir/Madam,

 

Our baby boy, Tyler Kael Paesch, was born September 16th, 2018 in Valledupar,

Colombia.

 

But what should have been a moment of happiness, like the birth of your baby,

became a nightmare. My wife, for lack of better words, died after birth due to

malpractice, and was wheeled with urgency to the ICU where they manage to

‘bring her back’.

 

My son was also admitted in the ICU for observation since was having trouble

breathing. And there he stayed for 6 weeks.

 

The History

Early on in the pregnancy my wife was diagnosed with toxoplasmosis caused by toxoplasma gondii, a parasite found in cats. Toxoplasma can cause malformation and blindness in the unborn fetus. Because of this high-risk pregnancy we opted to have the baby in Colombia since there is no treatment for toxoplasma in Aruba. So, when we were 7 months pregnant we travelled to Colombia. We had a total of 6 sessions with the perinatologist to monitor growth and development of the fetus. Everything looked good and promising.

 

However during delivery everything went terribly wrong. They ignored the warning of a high-risk pregnancy and forced the natural delivery of a macrosomic baby, causing a terrible hemorrhage. In trying to get the baby out as fast as possible they broke (deliberately) the baby’s collarbone. In trying to stop the hemorrhage they gave may wife an overdose of a drug, which stopped her heart.

 

From there my wife was wheeled to the ICU and there she stayed for 4 days. Our son meanwhile in the ICU was showing respiratory problems, but the doctors there dubbed it ‘normal’. On day number 6 we entered the ICU only to learn that our baby had stopped breathing the night before and had to be intubated, there was no explanation as to why, since his lungs were well developed. A cardiologist found a small hole in his little heart, but still there was no explanation for the respiratory problems.

 

After the second episode where he had to be intubated again, and after which we ‘insisted’ for better care, a laryngologist was brought in where the baby was diagnosed with a severe laryngomalacia and that he only had 30%-40% capacity of his airways. He would need to undergo a very delicate surgery. But the insurance didn't want to pick up the tab.

 

Since my wife’s insurance in Colombia is a subsidized insurance, they (the clinic) don’t give it (the patient) priority, which is different, if say, you we were paying in cash. With my resources (and patience) running low. I called the AZV (my insurance in Aruba) but since our baby boy was born in Colombia and is, therefor, not registered in Aruba he was not eligible for insurance (from Aruba).

After much ‘pressure' on the Insurance in Colombia (Nueva EPS), we received news that we were being transferred to Bucaramanga where there’s a specialist who can perform these types of delicate surgeries. We were transported by ambulance 8 hours to the HIC (Hospital Internacional de Colombia) in Bucaramanga where immediately upon arrival at 21:30 they started making preparation for surgery, but it had to be postponed because the specialist wasn’t feeling ‘well’ (Later we learned that she had suffered a

miscarriage herself that same day).

 

We end up staying 3 weeks in Bucaramanga. At the end of my financial means I begged on Facebook for everybody who knows me to please help us out with whatever they could. I swallowed my pride and with tears in my eyes I wrote asking for help on Facebook. Yes, I was desperate. I asked everybody who believed in God, or whatever the higher power is for them to pray for my baby boy and his fast recovery.

 

On week 3 the miracle happen. The specialist came to see Tyler and made the astonishing discovery that our baby boy wouldn’t need the surgery, he still had his condition but managed to learn to live with it, she had no explanation for it, nor didn’t understand how it was possible. However his condition was still delicate; a flue, crying, could irritate the airways and cause asphyxiation. We returned to Valledupar with our baby boy but had to isolate him for the outside world for 3 months. Meaning; we couldn’t travel to Aruba or anywhere (!).

 

 

Four months after Tyler was dismissed from HIC we returned to Bucaramanga and Tyler was doing much better. The specialist sent a tube camera through his nose, down to his airways and saw that Tyler was making good progress. We were told that we could travel and start doing things together as a family (simple things like going to the mall, shop, visit parks). Tyler needs more exams but ‘we’ cannot pay for all these expenses because we just don’t have it.

 

What we request

Since Tyler was born, we can only do limited work. Tyler requires attention constantly. If a ‘normal’ healthy baby takes a lot of time, babies who are diagnosed with this condition take all the time, furthermore we just can’t trust anybody to stay with him. Being and living in a foreign country makes that all the more difficult. With this we approach your organization and ask for financial support and/or donation.

 

In May of 2021 I returned to Aruba to work but was diagnosed with the Covid19 virus upon arrival and have severe after effects to the point that I can hardly move my right arm making it more difficult to provide for my family. I have been away from my family 4 months now, and without any financial help I don’t know when we’ll be able to be together again. In between us travelling to Bogota and Aruba, Tyler needs to undergo one more exam. Considering, tickets, lodging, transport, food, clothing (baby), doctor, the budget approximately will be of $ 4000,00. It is not a big amount, but when you don’t have it, it is.

 

We’ll be truly grateful with whatever amount your organization is able to help us with to cover these costs.

Hoping to have informed you sufficiently and hoping on your consideration and positive response I leave.

 

Sincerely,

 

Michael Paesch