Hello, My name is Alexis. I am the the daughter of LaKetha Smitherman-Hudson. This Go-Fund-Me account has been created to help my mom, a retired wonderful grandma recover in the most comfortable way possible. We have been in Orlando since April 18,2021 and for those who don’t know we live in Atlanta, GA. We are currently experiencing the most traumatic and life-changing events. We originally arrived to celebrate my daughter Baleigh’s birthday (granddaughter of LaKetha) which was on April 19,2021. We planned a family vacation and arrived in Orlando on that Sunday, April 18,2021. We checked in to our hotel and were excited about the festivities we planned for Baleigh to have the best birthday ever.

Tuesday April 20,2021 my mom (LaKetha) started to experience a few slight headaches and a bit of nausea. She then proceeded to take some medicine to relive her of her symptoms. The morning of Wednesday, April 21,2021, she stated to me that she was still not feeling well and that she wouldn’t be able to make it to Magic Kingdom with us for the day. I checked on her every hour while we were away and she stated that she was not feeling any better and she actually felt worse. When we arrived back to our hotel that evening she was propped up on the floor as if she was trying to reach her phone but didn’t have the strength to reach it. I immediately called 911 and the paramedics arrived in 10 minutes to our hotel.

We arrived at the hospital and she kept saying that the headache she had from the day before had only gotten worse. She is now in a room at the ER and she is going in and out of consciousness. The doctors run a CT scan and they find a 4 centimeter tumor on the back of her cerebellum. A neurosurgeon is called in immediately. He tells me that she needs to undergo an Emergency Brain Surgery. He also tells me that if he sends my mom back to Atlanta, because of the size of the tumor it could have potentially killed her. The neurosurgeon was very adamant about removing the tumor and so was I. I let the surgeons and nurses know that whatever needed to be done to save her life please do so. She was admitted into ICU. She had surgery on Friday, April 23,2021. When she came out of surgery she was somewhat responsive but the doctors stated how normal that was after surgery. Doctors let me know that they were able to remove about 95% of the mass. The mass melted while they were operating. Few days later doctors tell me that there is swelling on her brain, they tell me that have to operate again to remove the rest of the tissue and drain the fluid off of her brain. 2 surgeries within 5 days on the brain. 15 days in ICU.

Prayer works and GOD is real. She is now in a skilled nursing facility where she is doing physical, occupational and speech therapy. The doctors are unsure about when she will be able to come home. I am asking for donations to make sure she is able to transition back into society and to also support our family’s overwhelming desire to be present with her at such a difficult time. All amounts help. She thanks each and every person, family, friend , prayer group and even strangers that have been praying for recovery. Please continue to pray for her strength. We love you and thank you.