Hi everyone, this is my wife Kris. From the age of about 15, she has been attacked by a slow, demyelinating disease that no one has been able to diagnose. She slowly lost her ability to walk, then to control her core muscles, then her arms. 35 years later, she is now quadriplegic and uses a power wheelchair with a head array and a "sip and puff" straw to move.

We have been given an opportunity to go to a clinic in San Diego who uses stem cells to rebuild the myelin sheath around the spinal cord. It is a new procedure, which is FDA approved, and is in some way connected to the National Institute of Health. Unfortunately, medical insurance does not cover the cost. The procedure costs $16,500, and all of this is out-of-pocket.

We would like to ask for any help covering the cost. The procedure is on February 2nd, 2017, and we need to make the payment on February 1st.

There are no guarantees that the procedure will help. It affects different people differently. My wife and I, however, have turned over every rock we can find to help her recover from this disease. We have gone to the Mayo Clinic, Johns-Hopkins, MD Anderson, Baylor, and the National Institute of Health, only to come away without a diagnosis. This procedure is very promising, and we are very excited to go.

Any help is appreciated, and all prayers are welcome.