Help Family During Father's Critical Recovery

Donovan is a loving father of three, including two children with special needs—his oldest struggles with autism and ADHD, while his youngest battles epilepsy and cannot be left in typical childcare due to frequent, unpredictable seizures. Over the past week, his life has been turned upside down. After a fall, Donovan has found himself hospitalized, facing a series of life-threatening complications. He’s been diagnosed with a pneumothorax, a collapsed lung, but the situation is anything but typical. Despite doctors' efforts, his lung wouldn't begin to function again, and the medical team struggled to understand why.

It wasn’t until last Thursday that a CT scan revealed the cause: Donovan has a condition called "blebs" scattered through one area of his lung. These are small, blister-like sacs that are similar to an aneurysm in the brain. Weaknesses in the lung tissue balloon out and leak air into his chest cavity, preventing his lung from re-expanding without suction to remove the air. He's had a suction tube inserted into his chest. After a long and painful ordeal, Donovan underwent surgery on Monday to address the issue. He's now recovering in the ICU, where he'll stay for a few more days before beginning a lengthy recovery process at home. His doctors have made it clear that his journey back to a full recovery will take time and he will be unable to work for several weeks.

The financial strain on his family is already immense. Rebecca, his partner, has been by his side in the hospital, which has meant more time off work for her as well. Together, they are now facing a period with no income coming in, as they both work opposite shifts to care for their disabled children. The added costs of hospital stays, meals, and transportation have only made things harder, and the coming weeks will only add more pressure. Donovan is in excruciating pain, and there is a possibility he may need to stay in the hospital longer, further delaying his recovery.

The surgery required the removal of a 2” x 2” portion of Donovan’s lung, a significant and painful procedure that will require an extended recovery period including significant time to return to full function to the extent he will need to return to his physical job.

As a family that already lives paycheck to paycheck, they cannot afford the loss of income that is quickly becoming a reality. The burden of medical bills, daily living expenses, and the need to care for their special-needs children is overwhelming. Their vehicle broke down recently. They had been trying to save for a new one, but with the added expenses and no income and paying for constant ubers to go to the hospital and do all the other household errands (Donovan used to ride his bike for most errands, but Rebecca is unable to do that with the three kids in tow) they have nothing left.

This young family needs help. Any donation, no matter how small, can make a world of difference in helping them through this incredibly difficult time. Whether you are able to donate or not, please consider sharing this message so that others can help.

Donovan and his family are fighting an uphill battle, but with your support, they won’t have to face it alone.

UPDATE: Donovan was released from the hospital today.