Hey y’all!

One of my best friends, Perk, suffered from a hemorrhagic stroke on October 12th.

He and his wife, Laura, were out of town visiting her family in Wisconsin when he began showing symptoms - vision loss and fuzzy hearing. Thankfully, they acted quickly and he laid on the floor while she called 911. After being assessed at a local hospital and they realized his brain was bleeding, Perk was life-flighted to a larger hospital where he is now receiving care.

Thankfully, Perk is stable and is able to perform some small movements on command. He is mostly keeping his eyes closed the majority of the time but has begun opening them occasionally.

Laura is by Perk’s side reading and talking to him, reminding him of how loved he is every day. I hiked with Perk for thousands of miles on the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest Trail and Continental Divide Trail and he always talked about the amazing woman he dreamed of finding one day. I’m so glad he found just the perfect one to help him get through this.

They don’t currently know where things stand long-term, but it is suspected that he has a long trail to recovery ahead of him. That’s where Perk and Laura need us most! Being out of town, Laura unable to work, and with an unknown timeline for medical care, the financial side of things for them seems very daunting.

I want Perk to be able to focus on healing and building back his strength and Laura to put her energy into supporting that.

If I know one thing about Perk he is one of the toughest friends I have and when he puts his mind to something he doesn’t quit. I’m looking forward to more trail time in the future with Perk and Laura. Lots of instant Cafe Bustelo needs drank. We are cheering for you, Perk!

If you’re able to contribute - no amount is too small! If not, sharing is free. Please feel free to leave a message for Perk with your donation, so Laura can read it to him!