Support Pam's Recovery Journey

Hello and thank you for visiting this GoFundMe.

I am Kimberly, and I have created this GoFundMe for my niece, Pamela Collins Barker.

In November 2022, during a yearly routine MRI for Pam’s MS, there was a change to a location that had been monitored for a few years. In January 2023, a biopsy was performed. On February 15, 2023, Pam was at work and had a TeleVisit appointment with her doctor who informed her that the result of her biopsy was Glioblastoma. Glioblastoma is always considered Stage 4.

Pam immediately started radiation and on April 14 she rang the bell after 30 radiation treatments. Five days later, Pam, her mom Rita, my daughter Kandice, and I left for a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Ireland for Kandice’s wedding. Immediately after our return, Pam started chemotherapy which continued for several months.

For the next year and a half, Pam felt great. This past October, Pam started experiencing weakness on her left side and some vision changes. She immediately had an MRI which revealed a new tumor. On October 30, Pam had surgery to remove the tumor. The doctor felt confident that all the tumor was removed. Now it was time for Pam to heal and recover from the surgery.

Mid-December, Pam started a new chemotherapy. Towards the end of the month, Pam started to not feel well. On January 6, Pam experienced an incident at home. She was transported to the hospital. At this point, Pam had no mobility on her left side. She spent the next 10 days in the hospital and was transferred to the Shepard Center in Atlanta for rehabilitation on January 17.

Let me tell you something about Pam. She is a fighter! In this short period of time, she has gone from not being able to move her left leg and arm, to being able to move her leg and lift her arm, to walking with a cane for short distances.

She will be released on February 6, to return home, and continue to receive outpatient physical and occupational therapy.

Pam will be going to live in her parents' home because her house needs to have renovations to accommodate her needs. Just a few of the renovations are to install a stair lift so Pam can go up to the 2nd floor where all the bedrooms are located. The only bathroom that has a shower is also on the 2nd floor and it will have to be completely renovated. There are areas of the home where there is carpet that will have to be replaced with hard surface flooring for easier wheelchair movement.

Pam has been on leave from work and receiving disability payments since her surgery in October which has impacted their household income. As you can imagine, the renovations that must be done to accommodate her needs are rather expensive. Which leads to why I have created this GoFundMe. She is very grateful to be able to go to her parents' home to continue her recovery, but she would really like to go back to her home to be with her husband, Wes, 15-year-old son Wesley, and her pups Marley and Sarah.

Just a little something about my niece – she has always been a giver of herself. Just one example - since 2014 she has been a Fairy Godmother for Bert's Big Adventure, which is a nonprofit that provides all-expense-paid trips to Walt Disney World for children with chronic and terminal illnesses and their families. This is something she has been very passionate about which just speaks volumes of the love she has in her heart for others.

Pam is now in need of some Fairy Godparents! Any contribution is greatly appreciated. Please keep Pam and her family in your prayers.

Sincerely,

Pam's Fairy Godaunt