On Saturday, April 22, my sister-in-law, Ruby Downes, suffered a cardiac arrest in the early morning hours. My 12 year old nephew found her in bed unresponsive and called 911. She has been in the ICU ever since.

Ruby is currently still sedated and intubated while the doctors work to get her stable enough to do the tests that will determine what caused this episode and what they can do to treat her going forward.

We don’t currently know the extent of the damage she has suffered, but it will likely require extensive rehab.

Ruby is a working mom with her older son in college and her younger son in shock from finding his mother unresponsive and needing CPR. She did not have medical insurance at the time of her episode, and obviously will be out of work for quite some time.

This is going to be financially crippling, but we know Ruby has a big tribe with even bigger hearts that can help. All money raised will go to assist with paying her medical bills and living expenses. We greatly appreciate anything you can spare to help the family during this difficult time.