I never imagined I’d be in a position where I’d have to publicly fight for my mother’s right to receive basic care and dignity. But here we are—because the truth is, the system in Delaware is failing families like mine every single day. The average person who applies for Long-Term Medicaid has no idea how complex, time-sensitive, and unforgiving the process really is. And honestly, the state counts on that. Every ninety days, families are required to reapply, and unless you know the exact steps, exact documents, and exact timing, you’re almost guaranteed to get a denial letter—over and over again. It’s a cycle of stress, confusion, and desperation, and many people never make it through. The harsh reality is this: the state doesn’t want to cover these bills, and the system is designed so that people who don’t have expert legal guidance get lost before they ever reach approval.

My family never expected to be in this battle. For months we saw small changes in my mother—forgetting conversations, getting confused in familiar places, struggling to remember things she never used to second-guess. We tried convincing ourselves it was stress. Aging. Being tired. But when those moments became frightening, when her personality began to shift, and when confusion turned into fear, we knew something was deeply wrong. The official diagnosis confirmed what our hearts already feared: dementia. And from that moment on, our lives changed.

I’ve spent my entire adulthood working hard and building stability for my family. We are not irresponsible. We are not careless. We are not people who ignore our responsibilities. But the cost of care for someone with dementia is staggering. In-home care and, eventually, full-time care in a medical facility can cost upwards of $16,000 to $20,000 every single month without Medicaid. No middle-class family can survive that. No honest working person can absorb that cost—not without losing everything.

And that is why we’re here. We’re fighting for her care, for her safety, and for our family’s stability. We have found the perfect attorney—someone specialized in elder law, someone who is passionate about protecting the elderly from these horrendous injustices, someone who knows exactly how to navigate this broken system with precision and compassion. But expertise like this doesn’t come cheap, and the price for someone so skilled and committed is far beyond what we can manage alone.

This brings us to why we’re asking for help. We need to raise $20,000 to hire this attorney, who can guide us through the Long-Term Medicaid application process properly, efficiently, and without the devastating denials the system is built to produce. We’ve tried everything we can on our own, but the process is intentionally complicated and overwhelming. We need professional help to secure her care and protect our family from financial ruin.

Sometimes it feels like the ground is shifting beneath our feet. Watching my mother slip in and out of herself—watching the fear she can’t express—has been one of the hardest experiences of my life. She spent her years sacrificing, loving, and taking care of all of us. Now it’s our turn to fight for her. But we can’t do it alone.

We aren’t asking for help lightly. Every contribution brings us one step closer to securing my mother’s safety, dignity, and long-term care—without losing the stability we have fought so hard to build. Your support, prayers, and generosity mean more than words can express. Thank you for helping us protect her.