Please Participate, Please Share. Here is a link you can copy and paste into your email if you like to share with family, friends.    gf.me/u/xs4ki7

Care Facility gave family very short  notice that her insurance ran out, requiring out of pocket expenses, or to relocate Merry May today Thursday March 26th at noon....  UPDATE... Nursing Home has been and continues to appeal to insurance company to do the right thing to approve and extend coverage given the healing process will take time. If there is any emergency funding to extend care longer, to protect and continue quarantine,   that would be appreciated as well.  Thank you, thank you, everyone who has been donating, sharing, and making this go viral, none as deserving a miracle as Merry May. Today we have seen a miracle, many helpers who have given Merry hope in this time of healing.  

Please join with me, match my donation if you can, make a small one if you can, this truly could be a matter of life or death with the virus on the
rampage. 


With Coronavirus and with short notice, it places Merry in a very  vulnerable position. We are trying to get the facility to add a measure of commonsense as many places are on lockdown. Merry, is caught in the middle and needs our help. Merry has inspired me and many over the past years- yet silently has weathered much adversity.  Merry's sister Marcy will oversee contributions, but I volunteered to set this up and will lead off with a contribution and a challenge for all who see this to make an contribution you can. It's been humbling to watch this go viral. 

Now is not the time to try and re-home someone in her medical condition. She is in California and many places are on lockdown.        

#Mark #FightForMerryMay #GoodWoman #NeedingHelp

The following  is a summary of the medical / cost challenges Merry has been facing shared by her sister Marcy. 

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On February 5, 2020 Merry accidentally fell down a long flight of stairs, landing on a hard tile floor at the bottom of the stairs.

She was found unconscious and taken by ambulance to a hospital  where she spent several days in ICU under close observation for brain surgery.

Thankfully, she has (so far!) been able to avoid surgery. She’s lucky to be alive, with no expected permanent paralysis or long term brain damage,     but she is still suffering greatly due to the multiple injuries  from the fall and the projected recovery time.

These are her major injuries:



Skull fractures (2)

Brain bleed 

(hopefully healing, but still being watched for possible surgery)

Fractured neck bones (2)

Fractures lower back/spine (2)

Broken wrist

Fractured sternum

Broken clavicle

Eye orbital fractures (2)

Broken ribs (5)

Extreme impact/bruising on legs, hips, shoulders, and feet



Doctors have estimated that Merry's recovery time will be 4-6 months. Just how complete her recovery will be is still unknown. A few weeks ago     she was transferred to an excellent skilled nursing facility with 24 hour observation, support, and continued rehabilitation treatment.

For the past couple of weeks she, and all patients in the facility, have  been under quarantine orders, with no visitors allowed. The strict measures   seem to be working, and Merry so far has no signs of COVID-19 infection.

That is especially important, not only because or her serious injuries, but because of her age (64) and her pre-existing diabetes and ulcerative colitis. She is considered very high risk for COVID-19.

Everyone agrees - her doctors, her caregivers, and her family - that keeping Merry where she is for at least another month, perhaps two   is the very best option for her.



Unfortunately, her health insurance will no longer cover her stay at  the skilled nursing facility, and her fragile health condition makes moving her to a different facility at this time not only unwise, but potentially fatal. The best, and least expensive option is to keep her where she is but move her   to an "assisted living" unit within the  facility, which is less costly than 24-hour skilled nursing.




In addition to her horrible accident and injuries, Merry was laid off from work last November and has been getting by with only disability payments since then.

She has no way to pay her $4500 health insurance (Cobra) deductible that is already due OR one, perhaps two more months at her current facility with a 30-day cost (at the least expensive shared room price) of $4903, due immediately.

Her immediate family members are not able to help her financially at this time given the 24 hour notice but are confident that they will be able to   provide the support she needs going forward, once she is able to at least walk and handle more independently her basic hygiene, medication, and   feeding tasks.




Thank you, thank you -- for any amount you can contribute.   

And  please look often for "A Merry Thought" to be posted regularly on this fundraising site - a reminder that Merry is still hoping and praying to recover completely and be able to again share happy, hopeful thoughts with others. 

"Merry May has lived true to her "happy" name throughout her life, and many people have been touched over the years by the uplifting messages she has shared on Facebook and beyond, titled simply "A Merry Thought." https://www.facebook.com/aMerryThought/

She's now experiencing some difficult financial challenges and urgently need help raising funds to pay these unexpected and critical health care costs that her insurance won't cover, so she can stay safe for the next 60 days, then with hope she will be well enough to move out and the virus implications will have  passed.

---------



A COST ESTIMATE FROM BROOKDALE:


Below is a breakdown of costs for Merry.

Option 1 is for a private room,
Option 2 for a shared room.

I’ve attached an E-brochure which includes floor plans and list of services and amenities.



I’m aware you have concerns about cost, but keep in mind our community is month to month.

Within the first 90 days living at our community Merry may cancel anytime, only after 90 days will we require a 30 day notice.

With the looming restrictions of COVID-19 and obvious risks.
Merry can make a safe and fluid transition to our Assisted Living and  be kept safe from the Virus in the meantime, while other alternatives  can be arranged.

 30 DAY COSTS NOTED BELOW

Option 1,
Room 261


Rent: $3995

Care: $423
(Escort/Transfer Assist & Assist with showering 2x weekly)

One-time community fee: $1000

Total: $5418, due at signing.

Option 2, Room 228A

Rent: $3480

Care: $423
(Escort/Transfer Assist & Assist with showering 2x weekly)


One-time community fee: $1000

Total: $4903, due at signing. 

 ----- 

The funds generated would provide Merry May 60-90 days at this facility and for her to make her Cobra payment for ongoing insurance helps. 

Your generosity and compassion are appreciated at this challenging. 

----

Mark Allen (#1 Fan of Merry May and "A Merry Thought". https://www.facebook.com/aMerryThought/

Thank you.

Lets help Merry May get back to her family, her grandchildren need her.

GoFundMe Team- To answer your questions. 

Who you are? The Campaign was initiated by Mark Allen, but the donations are for the woman shown in the photos (Merry May), her sister will be   the one who withdraws the funds and has already set up to do so, so that she will oversee paying the skilled facility.  

Where you're from: The campaign was initiated in Lindon, Utah, but the patient resides in S. California at a skilled facility. 

Your relationship to the parties you're raising funds for: I have been Facebook friends with Merry May and her sister Marcy for many years. 

How the funds will be used (be specific as possible). If you read the full narrative, you can easily identify where the funds are going. To help pay         medical rehabilitation costs since insurance has stopped paying. Merry will require several more months to be restored to health. 

If you intend to withdraw the money, how you plan to send the funds to the parties you're raising money for or use the money on their behalf:

Option 1,
Room 261


Rent: $3995

Care: $423
(Escort/Transfer Assist & Assist with showering 2x weekly)

One-time community fee: $1000

Total: $5418, due at signing.

Option 2, Room 228A

Rent: $3480

Care: $423
(Escort/Transfer Assist & Assist with showering 2x weekly)


One-time community fee: $1000

Total: $4903, due at signing. 

 ----- 

Cobra Insurance Co-Pay est. $4500

The funds generated would provide Merry May 60-90 days at this facility and for her to make her Cobra payment for ongoing insurance helps.

For more information contact Marcy Brown at [email redacted] 

Follow Merry Thought here. https://www.facebook.com/aMerryThought/. 

Update: Merry is still recovering and, because of the many generous GoFundMe donations, is able to stay at the care facility in California for the next two months. She is in very strict isolation - no visitors - which is exactly what is needed. When she's stronger, she hopes to start posting again to her "A Merry Thought" Facebook page. In the meantime, I'm sure she'll smile a little brighter if you visit and LIKE her page. Here's a sample. https://www.facebook.com/aMerryThought/