Many of you know my husband Joe Gullo as a fun-loving, hard-working, willing to give the shirt off his back kind of guy. Something you may not know is Joe's greatest pride is his family and being able to provide physically, emotionally and financially. In May 2023, Joe’s world changed.

Let me provide some background for you… When Joe was 30 he suffered from kidney stones. As part of his diagnosis, he had an abdominal ultrasound. During the ultrasound, it was discovered that Joe has Polycystic Kidney Disease. What is that you ask? Polycystic Kidney Disease is an incurable genetic disorder, in which clusters of cysts develop within your kidneys. The cysts can vary in size and they can grow very large which can change the shape of your kidneys, including making them much larger. Having many/large cysts can damage your kidneys, causing your kidneys to enlarge and lose function over time. Joe started seeing a Nephrologist and they monitored his kidney function and changes were made to his diet and exercise to support his diagnosis. Over the years there was decreased kidney function, but in all honesty nothing drastic. But in the past year, the decline increased at a steady fast pace which took us by surprise.

Where are we now? Joe is currently receiving dialysis 3 times per week. He has good days and bad days. It seems every time we think his body is adjusting, he gets hit with a series of bad days. We are also planning for Joe to get a kidney transplant. Both of our oldest daughters are selflessly in the process of getting tested. If you are interested in getting tested please reach out to us and we will provide information for you to talk to a representative at Strong Memorial. Due to this, Joe is not working. He had to take a leave to focus on his health - both physical and mental.

As you can imagine, with the unexpected rapid decline in Joe’s health and growing medical costs on top of the normal monthly expenses, finances are weighing heavily on our minds. The goal of this is to hopefully alleviate some of the financial stress that accompanies Joe’s dialysis treatments, medications and upcoming healthcare expenses. These funds will allow Joe to focus on his health and mental well-being without the added stress of medical bills and financial constraints. Thank you for taking the time to read this and thank you in advance if you choose to contribute.