On 11/26/24, my father, Steve, suffered a hemorrhagic stroke. Most of you know my dad from Lake Side Liquor in Mendota, IL. "Liquor Man Steve" knew exactly what his customers wanted or needed and had it on the counter before you could even ask for it. He was amazing in that sense. Reading people was just one of his many gifts. I received a call from the store owner that Tuesday that he hadn't shown up to open the store, which is incredibly unusual, especially on an inventory day. My father hasn't missed work a day in his life, so I knew immediately something wasn't right. When I tried to call him and he didn't answer, my heart sank. My father is the type of man that would answer my call in any situation, regardless of what was happening around him. My husband and I tried multiple times to reach him with no success. The overwhelming sense of dread sunk to the pit of my stomach. If my father wasn't answering the phone, I knew it was because he physically couldn't. At that time, we'd called the Mendota Police Department for a wellness check. They were unsuccessful in their attempt to make contact with him as well. At that point, we'd given consent to kick down the door. Maintenance ended up climbing the roof and gaining access via the kitchen window. They found my father still in the shower. He'd suffered a stroke, fell, hit his head, and suffered a severe brain bleed with a 7mm shift. At that point, he'd been life-flighted to OSF St. Anthony in Rockford, Illinois, and was placed in an induced coma to allow his brain time to heal. They prepared us for the worst and had blatantly told Matt and me he'd most likely not survive, and if he did, there was a 27% recovery rate due to the length of time he'd been unconscious. Unfortunately, during this time, I had to make the difficult decision to have a feeding tube placement for him to maintain nutrition for healing and a Foley catheter due to his inability to control his bladder function, causing complications with his kidneys.

At this time, my father cannot speak and has no mobility on the right side. Cognitively, he is aware of who we are and what is taking place around him. But he cannot read or write, so communication at this time is difficult. We currently communicate with "Yes" or "No" questions, and he'll utilize his thumb up or down to respond. On 12/23/24, he was moved to Van Matre Rehabilitation Institute for intensive inpatient therapy. They work with him several hours a day, and the goal is to get him back to a level of functioning normalcy, whatever that may look like. At this time, they're working on transferring and maintaining his balance while he sits. We met with case management on 12/26/24, and they notified us that his tentative discharge is planned for 1/10/25. The goal is to take my father home with me. They suggested a skilled nursing facility, but at this time, this isn't something we're ready to consider. My father is going to need 24-hour care moving forward as he recovers, and we're hopeful we can get him to a level of functionality that can give him some sort of quality of life. During this transition home, I'll need to take FMLA from my job to assist him in his recovery and the follow-up care needed that's critical in those first several weeks. Matt and I will be there to participate in his therapy, to learn how to care for his feeding tube, and his essential daily care, including hygiene, range of motion, speech therapy, physical and occupational therapy, and anything else he may need as he recovers. It was brought to our attention that insurance will not cover home nurses or certain home medical equipment, but it will cover home therapy and basic care several days a week. He's incurred $35,000 worth of medical debt, even after using his insurance, and we anticipate that his insurance will expire soon, due to it being supplied by his employer and his inability to return to work. Matthew and I have been traveling an hour every day after work to be with him and participate in his therapy and learn as much as possible about his transition home. We've completely drained our savings account over the last 6 weeks traveling, supplying him with essentials that are not covered by insurance or rehabilitation services. Now we're asking our friends, family, and anyone kind enough to please assist us in any way possible. We were not prepared for this tragic and life-altering event, and we're doing our best to provide any sense of normalcy we can for my father. Prior to this accident, he'd been completely independent; working full-time, living alone, driving. I've had to take the reins and do what I feel is in the best interest of my father since he cannot make these decisions for himself at this time. Some of these choices have not been made lightly, nor without an immense amount of consideration. If you're able to assist in any way, financially, or even if it's simply just a list of resources you may feel could be beneficial to our family, we'd be extremely grateful.

We've been advised that GoFundMe does charge a certain percentage, so if you're willing to donate financially, listed below is also my Venmo, Cashapp, and PayPal information.

Cashapp: $AmbrosiaRappleyInzer

Venmo: @Ambrosia88

PayPal: @MattandAmberInzer

Some of these services request the last four digits of the phone number associated with the account: 0025

We're eternally grateful for all of you. Thank you so much.