Helping Alexa Support Her Health!

Update*** Alexa is exploring a treatment that has an incredible success rate treating ALS. The treatment lasts 6 months and is very expensive, but obviously, for the many of us who love her, there is no price tag that would be too much to pay for a return to health for Alexa! Thank you so much for your generosity.

Hello! We are Gina Montenaro and Maria Guarraci. We are writing to you on behalf of our wonderful sister-in-law, Alexa (Storch) Montenaro. Alexa is married to our brother Pete and they live in Oak Park, IL with their two children, Aurora (4.5) and Kai (2.5.) In late fall of 2024, Alexa started experiencing some concerning symptoms beginning with upper leg muscle weakness. Particularly in these first months of 2025, things have progressed significantly and she is experiencing decreased muscle strength in her legs, making many activities of her daily life very challenging. Stairs remain the biggest challenge, but even just flat walking has become difficult for fear of losing her balance and not having the strength to avoid falling, and she has stopped driving as well. Lifting her children up has been off the table for months, changing a dirty diaper is a struggle, making lunch for herself and the kids is draining, and even something as mundane as emptying the dishwasher takes a lot out of her. She has been going through the standard workup given her symptoms, including various blood work tests and multiple MRIs, etc., and she still doesn’t have an answer for what is causing this. Some of the potential remaining explanations for her symptoms are very serious and terrifying, and carrying that around has put an unimaginable emotional burden and stress on her that, without answers, will be a challenge in and of itself to shake and try to move beyond. There are so many people who love Alexa, and we are all doing what we can to help out including bringing meals, helping with the kids, and driving her and the kids where they need to be when Pete is unable to do so due to work commitments. However, there are many additional needs that we want to be sure Alexa can access WITHOUT having to worry about costs piling up. For example, if Alexa needs an Uber and a babysitter to get to one of her physical therapy appointments, or if Pete and Alexa are dog-tired by dinnertime and just want to order out. Additionally, we all want Alexa to do everything she can to support her healing which includes things like exploring functional medicine and acupuncture, which often aren't covered at all by insurance, but which have been proven effective in addressing these symptoms.

Alexa and Pete were very hesitant to let us do this GoFundMe because they have lots of support around them already, but we convinced them that the many people who love them but don't live close enough to bring them dinner or host a playdate for the kids still want and deserve a chance to help out.

Finally, Alexa definitely loves knowing that she is cared for and supported, but talking about what she is going through is overwhelming and exhausting right now. Sending a card or message or email is a great idea and will be much appreciated! But if you have lots of questions or are looking for information, it’s probably best to go through her caringbridge site: https://www.caringbridge.org/site/644c1b46-fe01-11ef-9c63-113a6ede66c4?utm_source=website_share&utm_medium=share_button&utm_term=&utm_content=link_share_button&utm_campaign=sitestart

Thank you so much for considering a donation of any size to help Alexa and Pete in this time of stress and uncertainty! We all are the village they need right now.