Helping Derick's Devoted
Donation protected
My brother Derick is the father of three beautiful children, the grandfather of an adorable seven month old girl, and the husband to my amazing sister in-law Michelle.
Michelle and Derick are high school sweethearts and have been together for 27 years. Their passion for one another is as strong today as it was all those years ago and their connection to each other is something that has always impressed me. Even when they are mad at one another, you can still feel their impressive bond.
Their three children are an amazing mix of both Michelle and Derick. They are all loving, caring, strong, bold, and exceptional people that I am proud to call my family. Each one of them are unequivocally like both of them and yet substantially different at the same time. This goes to prove how amazing they are as parents.
The sad thing is that with all good things, sometimes the pressures of life can highly affect and corrupt a good thing. For about 20 years Derick owned and operated a landscaping company and it was fairly successful. There were many highs and a few lows, but when the lows happened they seemed to be almost too hard to come back from. The things is, Derick was a fighter and with Michelle's support they always found a way to build it back up. Unfortunately these ups and downs take a huge toll on the mind and spirit. As these things kept happening, Derick became more and more depressed. He tried as hard as he could to fight the pressures, but finally decided it would be best if he sold the company. To him he had failed at one of the things he loves most.
The last year and a half has been an extreme fight for Derick. As he tried to find his next step in life, more doubt was created when things were not going in the direction he wanted. In turn this was leading to a more and more depressed person who was searching for a way out. Going to doctors for answers, Derick tried many different things and slowly became addicted to the medications. Michelle noticed the signs and tried very hard to help him with these problems, but without realizing that he was becoming addicted, he never had a chance.
The world often looks at people that suffer from addiction as being the lowest of the low, believing they have or never will be anything more than an addict. I'm telling Derick's story here now for two reasons: 1.) he is an amazing person that loves hard, works hard, and tries to be a good person. 2.) March 9th Derick overdosed on an unknown substance.
His story is much the same as many in the world today. He tried to find help and he found a medication that was working for him, but then he started to like the feeling of the medication too much. Thus starts the cycle of “this makes me feel better, I want more.” This is something that everyone can relate to in one facet of their life or another. It isn't always drugs that people are addicted too. Unfortunately with drugs when you can't find the thing you are looking for, you search for the next thing. If the next thing isn't available, you keep on searching and you need more and more until you just can't stop. This is where he came to, and it hurt him.
On the morning of March, 9th Michelle woke up and Derick was not in bed, so she started walking around to see what he was up to. When she found him, he was burning up and delirious. Michelle called 911, and soon the emergency team arrived. Derick's overdose sent him by ambulance to a local emergency room. He was unconscious, and had a fever of 109 degrees. His body was shutting down because of the extreme heat. The emergency team quickly acted to bring his temp down six degrees in a matter of two hours, which is nothing short of amazing. Their quick actions may have saved his life. The only problem at this point was that Derick was still in critical condition, and the hospital was not equipped to handle his situation. He was then transported by helicopter to a medical center in Boston.
At this time he remains in the hospital fighting, everyday getting a bit better, reaching new milestones and continuing to overcome obstacles that seemed unreachable just a few days ago. This only shows me more the person he truly is inside, and his no one can stop me attitude.
I know many people will not want to give support for this campaign for many of the reasons I listed above, and the stigma behind addiction. The problem with that is it is his family that is struggling the most and will be put in the worst of positions. The donations that I am asking for are for them, so they can pay for food, travel, parking, loss of income, medical bills, and any other necessary expenses during this incredibly hard time.
Any donation would be amazing and I'm asking for them because I can't do it myself and I know that they would do it for me. I also know that they would do it for anyone they could if the tables were turned because that is the type of people they are. I wrote mostly about Derick's story because that is what led the family to be in this situation but I could go one for days if I had to talk about the entire family and what makes them so awesome. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you for reading this and for any support you can provide.
Michelle and Derick are high school sweethearts and have been together for 27 years. Their passion for one another is as strong today as it was all those years ago and their connection to each other is something that has always impressed me. Even when they are mad at one another, you can still feel their impressive bond.
Their three children are an amazing mix of both Michelle and Derick. They are all loving, caring, strong, bold, and exceptional people that I am proud to call my family. Each one of them are unequivocally like both of them and yet substantially different at the same time. This goes to prove how amazing they are as parents.
The sad thing is that with all good things, sometimes the pressures of life can highly affect and corrupt a good thing. For about 20 years Derick owned and operated a landscaping company and it was fairly successful. There were many highs and a few lows, but when the lows happened they seemed to be almost too hard to come back from. The things is, Derick was a fighter and with Michelle's support they always found a way to build it back up. Unfortunately these ups and downs take a huge toll on the mind and spirit. As these things kept happening, Derick became more and more depressed. He tried as hard as he could to fight the pressures, but finally decided it would be best if he sold the company. To him he had failed at one of the things he loves most.
The last year and a half has been an extreme fight for Derick. As he tried to find his next step in life, more doubt was created when things were not going in the direction he wanted. In turn this was leading to a more and more depressed person who was searching for a way out. Going to doctors for answers, Derick tried many different things and slowly became addicted to the medications. Michelle noticed the signs and tried very hard to help him with these problems, but without realizing that he was becoming addicted, he never had a chance.
The world often looks at people that suffer from addiction as being the lowest of the low, believing they have or never will be anything more than an addict. I'm telling Derick's story here now for two reasons: 1.) he is an amazing person that loves hard, works hard, and tries to be a good person. 2.) March 9th Derick overdosed on an unknown substance.
His story is much the same as many in the world today. He tried to find help and he found a medication that was working for him, but then he started to like the feeling of the medication too much. Thus starts the cycle of “this makes me feel better, I want more.” This is something that everyone can relate to in one facet of their life or another. It isn't always drugs that people are addicted too. Unfortunately with drugs when you can't find the thing you are looking for, you search for the next thing. If the next thing isn't available, you keep on searching and you need more and more until you just can't stop. This is where he came to, and it hurt him.
On the morning of March, 9th Michelle woke up and Derick was not in bed, so she started walking around to see what he was up to. When she found him, he was burning up and delirious. Michelle called 911, and soon the emergency team arrived. Derick's overdose sent him by ambulance to a local emergency room. He was unconscious, and had a fever of 109 degrees. His body was shutting down because of the extreme heat. The emergency team quickly acted to bring his temp down six degrees in a matter of two hours, which is nothing short of amazing. Their quick actions may have saved his life. The only problem at this point was that Derick was still in critical condition, and the hospital was not equipped to handle his situation. He was then transported by helicopter to a medical center in Boston.
At this time he remains in the hospital fighting, everyday getting a bit better, reaching new milestones and continuing to overcome obstacles that seemed unreachable just a few days ago. This only shows me more the person he truly is inside, and his no one can stop me attitude.
I know many people will not want to give support for this campaign for many of the reasons I listed above, and the stigma behind addiction. The problem with that is it is his family that is struggling the most and will be put in the worst of positions. The donations that I am asking for are for them, so they can pay for food, travel, parking, loss of income, medical bills, and any other necessary expenses during this incredibly hard time.
Any donation would be amazing and I'm asking for them because I can't do it myself and I know that they would do it for me. I also know that they would do it for anyone they could if the tables were turned because that is the type of people they are. I wrote mostly about Derick's story because that is what led the family to be in this situation but I could go one for days if I had to talk about the entire family and what makes them so awesome. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you for reading this and for any support you can provide.
Organizer and beneficiary
Nick Garon
Organizer
Derry Village, NH
Michelle Mercier
Beneficiary