Love for Nolen

A special thank you to everyone who has given and shared the Love for Nolen campaign!! Such an amazing blessing to have support and prayers both near and far!
Wanted to give everyone an update from Melissa, the end of the month she and Nolen will make another trip to Detroit but this time for surgery.
Please read her update below and consider donating and sharing to help lessen the burden of the financial strain on the family. So many hidden costs to mention but know every penny raised is needed!!! Thank you and God Bless!

Nolen update from Melissa:
Our last appointment with Dr. Trese on June 26th was long but very good! Dr. Trese said the blood in the left eye is absorbing and looking clear. Nolen's pressure was very low (glaucoma) and this is of concern. His eyes are continuing to make vitreous fluid, which is a positive as it shows signs that the eyes are still healthy in some ways. He will have surgery on July 23rd to remove and replace the left lens which hopefully will give him some vision, as it is very cloudy (cataract). The Dr. will also insert a silicone oil bubble to hold down the retina to hopefully prevent it from peeling any further. We are hopeful for this next appointment! Hoping it will give Nolen even slight vision.
Help spread the word!


This is a fundraiser to help my dear friend Melissa Bubeck’s son Nolen. Melissa is an amazing friend, wife, mother, daughter, sister, Christian and Special Education Teacher.  She has touched so many lives with her compassion and unconditional love, so now it’s time to help her out. This campaign is a joint effort of friends, family and colleagues from Illinois and Louisiana.  Please read Nolen’s story below written by Melissa. She has not included in her story how the funds could help. It took a long time for her to even accept this idea, but after consistent nudging, prayer and family discussion she agreed to humbly accept any assistance we can provide.

Money raised will go to offset past, current and future medical bills not covered by insurance. Also, with numerous trips for out of state Dr. visits funds would go to help pay for gas, hotel stays, food but more importantly loss of wages during the travel days. Please consider donating what you can to help this beautiful family and in doing so lighten the load of these financial burdens.


Nolen Bubeck was diagnosed at 11 months of age with juvenile x-linked retinoschisis. It is a degenerative retinal condition that has slowly deteriorated his retinas. Fortunately, Nolen has had sight out of his left eye providing him the ability to function in school and sports somewhat efficiently. He has learned to compensate in amazing ways. This past January, Nolen woke up with blurred to no vision in his left eye (his better seeing eye). Since moving to Louisiana in 2011 we sought out different specialist to handle his condition, but encounter difficulty in finding someone who truly understands and feels competent to handle Nolen's eye condition. We have found that the best doctor for him is his original specialist Dr. Michael Trese, who practices in Royal Oak, Michigan. Since January, Dr. Trese requests Dr. visits/eye exams under anesthesia approximately twice monthly.

We are hopeful that some eyesight will be regained, but more importantly Nolen is extremely hopeful!

Currently, Nolen has no vision and relies on the help from friends and family. He maintained very good grades the end of his sixth grade school year with the help of a awesome administrators, teachers, and a paraprofessional. It seems as though that is how we will begin his seventh grade school year, unfortunately.

We are so proud of Nolen's strength and patience throughout this process!


As a dear friend of Melissa, I thank you for considering giving what you find in your heart to give.  Please know that there is no amount that is too small and prayers are always needed!!