Richard just wants to work...

Hi. My name is Jeff. The man in the picture is my brother. His job in the shipbuilding industry provided him with a living wage and good family health insurance for years. In February, Richard was down with covid and pneumonia, putting him out of work for several weeks. He returned to work as soon as he was cleared. Shortly after this, Richard had a heart attack. The result was two stents being inserted into his cardiac arteries. Again, he returned to work as soon as he was cleared. Then my brother became the luckiest unlucky man alive.

 

On March the 28th, my brother happened to be at the hospital for something unrelated when he went into cardiac arrest. They were able to resuscitate him through a combination of CPR and a defibrillator. He was moved to ICU, where he went into arrest again. They had to use the defibrillator twice to resuscitate him the second time. Had my brother been at home, he would never have survived. After five days in ICU, sedated and on a ventilator, we received his diagnosis: My brother has a ventricular aneurysm.

 

This aneurysm is a very weak area between two of the chambers in his heart. He now has a pacemaker/defibrillator implant in his chest to keep him stable. His employer has chosen to put him on an extended "leave of absence" due to this condition. What this means for Richard is that he can keep his insurance... If he can pay for it. He receives no income while on this involuntary leave of absence. The catch-22 is that this leave of absence also renders him ineligible to collect unemployment benefits.

 

All my brother has ever wanted is to provide for his family. Unfortunately, his employer and his union have let him down. No one else will hire him. He is in bankruptcy. He has no income. If he comes out of the leave of absence status to collect unemployment, he loses his health insurance. All I'm asking is a little help for Richard. He has started the disability process, but it is a long road. Anything you can do to help Richard make ends meet in the meantime means more than I have words to say. I know it's a lot to ask, but any amount is a blessing. Every donation is a prayer answered. Thank you so much for your kindness and generosity. God bless you.