Shining Hope: Todd’s Dementia Treatment Fund

Local Montgomery, Illinois family, Todd & Michelle Nance, and their sons, have recently received the devastating news that Todd, aged 45, has been diagnosed with early onset dementia. As a result, their lives have been impacted not only emotionally, but financially, and we wish to alleviate these burdens as much as possible.

We have established this GoFundMe page to help pay for medical expenses and future accommodations that Todd will undoubtedly need.

Todd has worked tirelessly as a stagehand for more than 20 years at the Paramount Arts Theater in Aurora, RiverEdge Park in Aurora, and for The Chicago StageHands Local #2 union. His unwavering commitment to work and a job well done was always his utmost priority. While the diagnosis is recent, the family’s life has been altered since the beginning of 2023 when his impairment began impacting his ability to work. With this dementia diagnosis, Todd is no longer able to work at all.

Todd has experienced a variety of symptoms such as: impaired judgment, personality changes, deterioration of brain matter, social communication loss, language loss and verbal speaking issues, loss of energy and motivation, inability to understand language, apathetic disposition, distractibility, and involuntary muscle memory movements. His daily functioning will continue to decline until he loses the ability to do all of these things and will need continuous 24-hour care.

Additionally, Michelle, Todd’s wife and primary caregiver, has rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, and other related complications from these conditions. While these conditions are not visible, they are very debilitating and add more physical and financial strain on the family.

Their sons, Dawson and Colby, are currently at their corresponding colleges earning degrees in mechanical and software engineering respectively. They have several years left to go and travel home when they can to help out.

Every donation, no matter the size, will make a significant difference in alleviating the financial strain the Nance family has and will directly support Todd.

We will update everyone periodically to let you know how Todd and the family are doing. We thank you for helping and supporting the Nance family in any way you can. It will be a long and challenging road for them and we hope it will stay a positive one for as long as possible.