Please help my friend & her family while her hubby's in ICU.

Hi! I'm Benita Cotton-Orr, and I'm asking for help for my friend and her family; her husband was life-flighted from Virginia to North Carolina and is fighting for his life in the ICU after suffering an aneurysm.

Barbara Nash is the first friend I made when I moved to this country back in 1986, and I wouldn’t have made it in those early days without the support of Barbara and her mother, Bernice, who became my “Second Mum” (and was there for me until she passed away two years ago). In fact, just two months after meeting me, Bernice and Barbara watched my son Christopher, age 2.5, when I had to go into the hospital to give birth to Stephen. And then had to stay hospitalized a week because of complications. They were there to watch the kids three years later, when I went for my first job interview. Soon after her job relocated the family from Georgia to Huntersville, NC, Barbara was involved in a terrible wreck that left her with a traumatic brain injury (TBI). She had to learn to walk and talk again. It took her years; what a trouper. She was placed on SSI disability.

She and her husband, Buddy, were putting the finishing touches on the cabin Buddy built for them to retire to near Galax, Virginia when tragedy struck again.

Which is why I’m asking you to help me help Barbara and her family.

Buddy has been hospitalized since Thursday, May 9, after he was life-flighted from their home in Galax to Atrium Wake Forest Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem, NC. The EMTs thought he was having a heart attack. It was far worse: a subarachnoid aneurysm. He’s in the ICU on a ventilator, sedated. Barbara’s in the ICU at his side, spending the nights at a hospitality house nearby.

The family is taking it day by day. Everyone is praying for Buddy, a church music director whose favorite pastimes are hiking, running ultramarathons, playing the piano and singing opera. The U.S. Army has granted their son, Nate, emergency leave and flew him home from Korea where he was deployed. Daughters Annie and Naomi are taking turns away from their young families, traveling four hours each way from Augusta, GA, to Winston-Salem, to be at Barbara’s side and help her understand the medical updates. Annie’s husband just retired from the U.S. Army after a 22-year career, and Naomi’s hubby is currently in the Army. They’re the salt of the earth!

While the medical professionals are taking care of Buddy, nobody’s taking care of the mounting costs for the family. Hotel rooms. The hospitality house for Barbara. The cost of traveling back and forth between Augusta and Winston-Salem. Upkeep for the Galax home. Meals for the family and especially for Barbara, who has celiac disease and must have gluten-free meals. And all this is before the insurance kicks in. Buddy is insured by Christian Healthcare Ministries, a Medi-Share program, and they’re not certain yet what it will cover as far as his treatment and care. Recovery after his miraculous life flight is likely to be lengthy, including rehab in a nursing home.

Can you help? I asked Annie and Naomi to estimate the monthly costs for the next three months. At a minimum, they calculate about $25,000. Any amount you can contribute will help this family – my family – get through this traumatic experience without the frightening worry of how to cover their overhead.

And please keep them in your prayers.