Introduction

Hello, we are fundraising for our disabled son Esau to attend a specialized three week intensive therapy program at one of the world-renowned NAPA Centers in the United States. You are probably wondering “what is his disability?”, “what is intensive therapy?”, and “why do they need help?”. First I will tell you all about our sweet boy and second I will explain what intensive therapy is, how it’s helped him so far, and why we think this opportunity will help him achieve more goals for quality of life, independence, and safety. Unfortunately, cost is the main barrier to the therapy which is why I created this GofundMe. Please help our son in this time of need.

Esau’s Story

I experienced a serious complication in labor that deprived Esau’s brain of oxygen. In the NICU, he was diagnosed with Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy, HIE. Hypoxic = lack of oxyegn. Ischemic = restricted blood blow. Encephalopathy = affecting the brain. The neurologist informed us that Esau sustained brain damage. She said he would likely live with disabilities, but she also informed us about the powerful healing capacity of the brain called neuroplasticity. This is when healthy parts of the brain take over damaged parts. The brain rewires itself by forming new neural connections and pathways. This paved the way for hope. The prognosis for Esau was unknown and scary, yet we remained full of hope and potential.

Urgency

Neuroplasticity is a lifelong phenomenon but it is highest during early childhood. It is much easier to learn new skills when the brain is at its peak and filled with abundant neural connections waiting to happen. As a child ages, their brain starts synaptic pruning, eliminating extra neural connections. This makes learning new skills more difficult. For example, toddlers pick up new languages effortlessly whereas teenagers have to work hard to learn them. It is crucial that Esau receives as much therapy now while his brain is at its prime for neuroplasticity so he can build up a solid foundation for future success and growth.

About Esau

Esau is a healthy, curious, and cheerful 3 year old boy who lives in a loving family environment. His favorite thing to do is play with his mom and dad. Esau uses the help of a gait trainer to walk around when he is not riding in the double stroller with his baby brother Emilio. Esau is nonverbal but communicates meaningfully. He is learning to use an AAC, augmentative and alternative communication, device. He enjoys watching Sesame Street, Blippi, and Ms Rachel. Some of his favorite activities are popping bubbles, reading books, and swinging.

Like many children who live with HIE, Esau is developmentally delayed. He is also diagnosed with quadriplegic cerebral palsy. This simply means all four of his limbs are affected. His brain makes it hard for him to move his body the way he wants to. Esau doesn’t let CP hold him back. He gets around in his own unique way by commando crawling, rolling, and scooting. Esau’s main goals are sitting, standing, walking with less support, and improved communication and fine motor skills.

Intensive Therapy

What is intensive therapy? The intensive model of therapy, IMOT, is high frequency and intensity of various therapeutic modalities. Traditional therapy is typically 1 hour per week over the course of a few months whereas intensive therapy is typically 3 week blocks of 2-6 hours every day. The repetition and intensity of the therapy helps promote neuroplasticity in the brain to help it learn new skills. The NAPA Center claims, “Many children gain more progress towards their goals in three weeks of intensive therapy than they do in a whole 12 months of ongoing traditional therapy” - napacenter.org.

Progress

Esau completed his first intensive therapy at the NAPA Center at 17 months old. We started seeing progress, independent commando crawling, before it completed. He has since completed several more intensive programs. We have seen noticeable gains after each intensive. Shortly after Esau’s most recent intensive, he began to push up to sit independently and walk in his gait trainer without the saddle. Did you know sitting is the gateway to increased mobility? Sitting unlocks independence, frees hands for play, develops core strength, improves balance, and leads to higher level skills like pulling up to stand and walking. Esau’s sitting is a monumental gain but it isn’t perfect and needs improvement for safety and practicality.

NAPA Center

NAPA stands for Neurological and Physical Adaptation. NAPA Centers are so unique and different from other therapy centers because they specialize in individualized intensive programs that treat neurological and developmental conditions like cerebral palsy. They also have the most cutting-edge and innovative equipment, technology, and modalities. NAPA Centers are so desired that they had to create a lottery based system to give more children a chance at attending.

To our luck, Esau secured a spot for Denver, Colorado location in July 2026. This is the same location Esau attended at 17 months. Esau will be having 3 hours of therapy daily M-F for 3 weeks. One of those hours will include speech therapy and the other two will be physical therapies.

Cost

The main barrier to intensive therapy at the NAPA Center is cost. The total cost of 3 weeks of therapy is $8,100. It is due at the start of June, one month before the therapy begins. Unfortunately they don’t take many insurances, including Esau’s PA medicaid, so it is all out of pocket. Additional fees of travel including airfare, rental car, and lodging, will come out to about $4,000. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for families of disabled children to struggle with finances (imagine therapies, treatments, equipment, home & vehicle modifications…etc)

Help

It is uncomfortable to ask for help but we are humbly asking for community support. Every donation counts. Sharing the link on social media, groups, and to friends and family is very important because more people will see Esau’s story, thus we may receive more potential donations. Esau’s healing depends on continued access to therapies. Thank you for reading. I will share updates on the Gofundme. Also feel free to check out Esau’s brand new Instagram page I created @Team_Esau to fundraise and track his progress.