Support Elowyn's Life-Changing Spinal Surgery

Almost 13 years ago our lives were blessed with a beautiful daughter, Elowyn Daisy. She was a happy and vibrant 9.5lb baby. She loved playing outside especially with mud. Ellie loved helping her parents take care of her brother. Ellie and her brother loved building forts together and playing mom and dad with their stuffed animals. As she continued to grow, she loved exploring her surroundings especially the beach and the woods. When Ellie was 8 yrs old we made the decision to move to North Carolina. Ellie loved hiking as a family as well as taking adventures to explore our new state. As Ellie continued to grow (over 4" per year) her doctor raised some concerns about her back. Ellie was also experiencing pain for unknown reasons. We began seeing a chiropractor to address her pain. It was discovered that our precious daughter had been battling severe scoliosis (curvature of the spine). We began immediate treatment as well as monitoring the curves with the help of the chiropractor Ellie was able to manage the pain better. We were able to continue hiking and going on adventures.

Over the past few months Ellie's pain began to increase. It was at this time that the chiropractor informed us that her curves had increased and it was time to consult another opinion. We scheduled a consultation at Duke University hospital with a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. He informed us that Ellie's curves we now at more than 60 degrees which is in the extreme phase of scoliosis. The only treatment for this is surgery. Ellie's consultation turned into a pre-op appointment. She will be having surgery on March 28th. She will undergo a full spinal fusion. The doctor will be fusing the vertebrae starting above her shoulder blades and going down to her waist. She will have to stay in the hospital for a few days then spend a few weeks at home recovering. The doctor said typical recovery time is 6 weeks before she can resume normal activities.

Ellie is at the point with her pain level where now simple everyday activities are difficult for her. She has a lot of trouble sleeping. She also has trouble standing, walking, and even taking a shower. She can no longer ride in the car for longer than an hour. This surgery will be a life changer for her. She will be able to do to do things again such as hiking and has a goal of learning how to ride a bike (her back curvature affects her balance).

We are starting this GoFundMe for two reasons. The first is to ask for prayers for our daughter. We believe and serve an amazing God who we know has our daughter in his hands. The second reason is to seek financial assistance. We have a high deductible HSA insurance plan and due to the high cost of the surgery our entire out of pocket maximum deductible for the year will be due at the time of the surgery. Unfortunately we currently do not have enough in our HSA to cover the full amount. If you feel at all inclined to donate we would be forever grateful for your assistance.

I have included pictures of Ellie so everyone can see what she is currently battling.

Thank you for reading this!

God bless you,

The Blake Family