Hello, my name is Joe McGurl. I'm a 34-year-old actor, director, and writer from Scranton, PA.

In February of 2024, I was diagnosed with End Stage Renal Disease, and by late 2025, my disease had progressed rapidly, and my health began deteriorating in a major way. Following several week-long hospitalizations in November of 2025 and per recommendations from my doctors, I had to unfortunately leave my position as manager of a local coffee shop to focus on recovery and improving my health as I could no longer physically perform my duties. After making it through the holidays managing my disease as best as I could, my health reached a critical point, and the decision was made to get me started on a full-time dialysis treatment plan.

I started dialysis in January 2026. My current treatment plan requires me to be at the clinic three days a week for four hours at a time. While I am happy to report that after a month of dialysis, I’m starting to feel some improvement in my symptoms, the physical and mental toll of the treatment and my disease is still immense. Dialysis is exhausting; some days I have the energy to move forward, while other days I struggle with even the simplest tasks. On top of all of this, I still have to manage and treat the symptoms of my type-1 diabetes, chronic anemia, and Crohn's disease. Juggling all of these major life changes and medical plans has been very stressful and taxing on both my body and mind.

The Current Situation: I have applied for Social Security Disability (SSA) benefits, but I am still awaiting a decision. I’ve been told that even if approved, it could be up to six months before I receive any financial support. I have not been medically cleared to go back to work, and trying to maintain a job on my current dialysis schedule is not feasible. While my family has been incredibly crucial and supportive during this time by providing me a home, rides to my appointments, helping with food and groceries, etc., I cannot rely on them for everything and would like to try and ease some of the load on them as well.

I’m starting this GoFundMe to help bridge the gap until my disability benefits begin. My goal is to raise funds to help cover:

If you are able to donate, please know that no amount is too small. Every dollar helps relieve the stress of this transition and allows me to focus on what matters most: staying strong and fighting this disease. I realize that times are hard financially for everyone these days, so if you want to help me but can’t donate, simply sharing this link with people in your network to help signal boost would mean the world to me.

Thank you for your kindness, well-wishes, thoughts, support, and for standing by me during this difficult chapter of my life.

With sincere gratitude,

Joe