Support Robert Matos' recovery from a stroke

I'd like to tell you about my friend Robert Matos, who suffered a brain bleed, or hemorrhagic stroke, on Feb. 5 and is currently a patient at Northwell's Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. We hope and pray he will back on his feet soon but his road to recovery will likely be a long one and won't come cheap. Hence, the reason for this GoFundMe campaign. I took quick look today at the the American Stroke Assn. website, which says the average cost of recovery from a stroke is about $140,000.

Let me share with you a bit about Robert, who I am honored to call my friend. He is kind and thoughtful--a friend in the very best sense of the word. When someone is in need help, Robert is the first in line to offer assistance, and often does so without asking anything in return. He has a big heart and generous soul. He is the type of person that we should all have in our lives.

Let me share with you what happened: Robert, who has served for 35 years as a masseuse at the Harmonie Club in NYC and for many private clients, collapsed on his way to a massage appointment, specifically one with my father, with whom he is very close. When I found him, his speech was slurred, his face was contorted and it appeared that left side of his body had stopped working. We called an ambulance and, within an hour of the event, got him to the emergency room, where he was given a CAT scan that showed he had had a stroke. The next day, he had surgery to "evacuate" the blood in his brain. He was in the intensive care unit on a ventilator for a couple of weeks, but since has been moved to a regular room where he is resting comfortably.

Now Robert needs our help. He is not a rich guy. Nor is his family. So financial support will go a long way to making the his road to recovery as quick and as smooth as possible.

Thank you in advance for your support.