Last week on November 14, our beloved friend and family member Robert Steffano suffered a debilitating ischemic stroke to his brain's left hemisphere, while at home in Southern Humboldt.

Luckily he was on the phone with his older brother when it happened, and so, knowing the exact time of the event, his brother was able to initiate an Emergency Medical Response. Robert arrived at the Garberville Hospital ER in time to get emergency treatment, and then was transferred quickly to UCSF Hospital. After stabilizing him in the ICU, numerous tests, and imaging he spent a total of nine days in San Francisco.

We now know that progressive deterioration of his heart, resulting from his valve repair surgery in 2014, caused the stroke. He will need another surgery in the near future to repair his heart valve again.

After his relatively brief hospital stay, he is now in an acute rehabilitation facility in Crescent City, CA. This lets him be closer to his immediate family and his friends in Humboldt County.

Currently, his diagnosis from his doctors is positive in terms of recovery. The acute rehab he is in is small with lots of focused care. While he is still mostly non-verbal, with severe aphasia, and has partial right side paralysis, his recovery has been progressive and he should eventually regain the ability to walk and communicate.

There is a long road of rehabilitation: physical therapy, speech therapy, and overall work ahead for Robert. Our goal is to allow him the ability to recover without worrying about financial responsibilities, including any additional medical and care costs that will inevitably come up.

Robert is a friend to all and is beloved by any person who is lucky enough to meet him. He has lived a life of giving. He has been an active member of the local volunteer fire department for over 30 years as both a firefighter and EMT. He is always first to offer help to anyone in need, whether it is helping fix a broken down car/bike, towing someone out of a ditch on the side of the road, or offering financial support to friends/family/neighbors in their time of need. If you know Robert, he has probably helped you in some way or another.

Another hallmark of his personality is his vibrant energy, intelligence, capacity for learning, positivity, and his indomitable will. These characteristics are sure to carry him in his healing journey. The UCSF Neurology team overseeing his care were pleased to hear of these personality traits, as they correlate with an excellent recovery.

Although Robert is insured and has coverage for rehabilitation, we do expect this to be a financially challenging time. Robert is unable to work and will be attending various forms of physical therapy to regain his abilities. The funds from this fundraiser will be used to pay all of the necessary bills, and costs to support him in this time. If you would like to contribute via mail, please reach out and we can give you a secure address.

We will be posting updates to the GoFundMe page as well as a CaringBridge page as they come in.

Thank you.