Please Help Chito Fight for His Life

Our Papa Constancio— or as he is lovingly known to most, Chito—,has been a jeweler in the Philippines for most of his life. Though he had fallen upon hard times for a period, he had recently been able to secure a small spot in a local open air market to continue his work, at the tender age of 77, to put his youngest daughter Jana through college. We recall how just a week prior, Papa Chito was telling us excitedly about his new clients and how he would be able to support Jana’s dream of becoming a nurse.

However, this excitement came to a screeching halt at 8:38 AM of July 28, 2021 because our Papa Constacio Bernardo, who was walking from his home to his work was tragically struck by a SUV whose driver was not paying attention. Even though he raised his hand to signal the driver to stop as he crossed, the driver paid no heed and rammed into him as he had almost made it to the other side of the street.

This accident left Papa Chito with:

• Multiple abrasions and contusions on his right upper body and left arm
• A displaced fractured tibia (a fractured bone in his left leg that had to be set back in place)
• Mastoid effusion (an infection in the small bone behind the ear)
• Bilateral skull fractures (fractures on both sides)
• Left frontal lobe hemorrhagic contusions (profuse bleeding from ruptured blood vessels on the front left side of the skull)
• And bilateral subdural hematoma (profuse bleeding from ruptured blood vessels in the membrane between the brain and the skull)

The damage was so terrible and immediate that the swelling was noticeable as he was being carried away to the Emergency Room. Papa Chito was already on blood thinning medication due to heart complications, which meant the range of treatments the hospital could offer were much fewer. If they were to try to give medication for the hematomas, they could compromise his heart; butif they left it as is, he would continue to bleed from his brain, slowly swelling it and suffocating it.

They have already administered two emergency Craniotomies (brain surgery to drain the blood that is suffocating his brain) to Papa Chito, a 77 year old man. Both times he survived and continues to fight to stay alive so he doesn’t leave behind his daughters, sons, grandkids, cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends who are praying for his recovery.

We humbly ask for your donations to help Papa Chito and his family pay for his medical expenses, and hopefully his aftercare, which cost beyond what his family is able to feasibly afford. We are sincerely thankful for every single person who shares and donates.