My name is Teresa Chavez. My husband and I have been married for 29 years, and together we have three adult children with special needs. All three of our sons are on the autism spectrum and live with developmental and intellectual disabilities.

As we grew into parenthood, we built our lives around making sure our children had the care, stability, and love they deserve. For the past 32 years, I have worked in housekeeping at Del Mar Country Club, while my husband took on the role of full-time caregiver at home. He has been the backbone of our family—managing all of our children’s daily needs and providing them with constant support, patience, and love.

Our life has not always been easy, but we have always faced our challenges with gratitude and made the best of what we had.

Recently, everything changed.

My husband suffered a sudden and severe stroke that has left him in a vegetative state. At this time, the medical team is not able to offer much hope for a full recovery, and we are slowly being asked to prepare for the possibility that this may be his new reality. If he is able to return home, it will require round-the-clock care, specialized medical equipment, medications, and major modifications to our home and transportation.

This crisis has placed an overwhelming burden on our family.

With my husband hospitalized, he is no longer able to care for our children. I have had to step fully into his role as their caregiver, which requires constant, 24/7 attention. Because of this, I am no longer able to continue working, and now both of our sources of income have come to a halt. Meanwhile, our regular household expenses remain, and new medical and caregiving costs are increasing every day.

Our support network is small. Our families have helped us as much as they can, but they also face their own responsibilities, and that support is coming to an end.

Our children, although adults, experience the world emotionally and intellectually as young children. They struggle daily to understand why their father is no longer home caring for them. Some hold onto hope that he will return, while others are overwhelmed with confusion and distress. The disruption to their routine has brought emotional challenges that require even more time, energy, and resources to manage.

We have always been a hardworking, self-sufficient family. We did our best to provide for ourselves and our children, despite limited resources. We never imagined we would face a situation like this—one that requires us to reach out beyond our means for help.

Today, we are asking for your support.

Donations will help us with:

Medical bills and ongoing hospital care

Long-term care needs and equipment for my husband

Specialized care and support for our children

Daily living expenses as we navigate this crisis

Transportation and necessary home modifications

Any contribution, no matter how small, will make a difference in helping our family get through this incredibly difficult time.

Even if you are unable to donate, we ask that you please share our story.