My Dad’s fight with Lewy Body Dementia

Thank you in advance for reading these daughter’s words in honor of her beloved father.

My intention is to raise money and the spirits of my hero, the man that gave me life and continues to be my inspiration.

He is the generator of our family engine and the light of our lives...

He has taken care of all of us — both family and friends — for so many years, and now it is time to also humbly ask for our community’s support.

My Dad is one of the hardest working men I know.

He is a loyal son, loving brother, a fun uncle, the coolest cousin, an adoring grandfather, a hero Dad, and a devoted husband.

This is my family’s story...

In May of 2012 my Dad was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. As you can imagine, this news did not come lightly.

My Dad was only 54. The doctors believe that my Dad had Parkinson’s long before he was diagnosed. So by the time we received the news, the disease, creating the steady decline inside of my Father’s body, meant he needed support quickly.

He started medication immediately. In the years since he has changed meds many times.

Though they help with the tremors, choking,
cramping hands, fierce cramping in his legs and swollen feet,  they also come with some very scary side effects.

He has hallucinations, uncontrollable emotions, fears, and insomnia.

When I tell you that it breaks my heart, it’s still not nearly enough to express how I feel.

As the years have passed, we’ve slowly seen him slip away. He’s a mirror shell of the man he once was.

He still wants to do so much, but his body allows him to do very little.

My Dad was a very active person. He worked for Clover Stornetta for over three decades. When he wasn’t working you would find him at home in Lake Pillsbury (his slice of heaven on earth).

At home and on the land, you would find him cooking, swimming, dirt bike riding, water skiing, cruising in a sailboat, cutting firewood, or driving his land cruiser all around the mountain side.

He was not only active and capable, but generous with each of his abilities, always willing to help someone out. Truly, his desire for life and to live was unmatched.

He was a man who loved living in his body and using all its bells and whistles.

It’s been 8 1/2 years since my Dad was diagnosed with Parkinson’s and today there’s another harsh reality, heartbreak and heartache for us as a family and for my Dad...

After a most recent MRI, my Dad has been diagnosed with Lewy Body Dementia.

This awful new disease comes in seven stages and my Dad is already in his 5th stage.

Although his diagnosis is terminal and comes with a short life expectancy, as a family we choose to have faith, live by hope and recognize his will to live.

I’ve never been one to ask for help, but, as I said at the start, it is genuinely time to ask for the community’s support.

We continue to do everything and anything for my Dad, but the reality is that we can’t fight this alone.

I’m asking for my family and friends to help me help my family.

My Dad’s overall medical costs are exorbitant, and his medications are through the roof.

My amazing Stepmom works to help with the financial burdens, but with my Dad’s declining health, she needs to be home with him around the clock.

My baby sister has taken time off from college to also help care for my Dad.

This is not a fight they should have to fight alone, plus I deeply want them to also focus on cherishing the wonderful time they have left with this beloved man we call our hero.

If you can help by donating, thank you. Truly, thank you. If you can send up a prayer, we also thank you.

Your care and support means the world to me and to my brave family.

In short, it means everything my Dad has ever meant to me.

All my love and gratitude,

Rochelle