Help Our Family Recover After a Year of Medical Crises, Job Loss, and Heartbreak

Aloha friends, family, and kind-hearted community members,

This is extremely humbling to write, but our family is in a difficult season and we are asking for support in whatever form feels right to you.

A Difficult Journey for Our Oldest Daughter, MJ.

Everything changed on New Year’s Eve when our oldest daughter, MJ, suddenly became severely ill. She remained sick from December through June and required 24/7 one-on-one caregiving. Tyler became her full-time caregiver, which meant all income from his work completely stopped. She experienced multiple hospitalizations at Hilo Medical Center and spent 18 days at Queen’s Medical Center on Oʻahu.

Even after returning home, she required strict medication supervision and close monitoring until she stabilized in August.

Through God’s grace, MJ is now back in school, maintaining a 4.0 GPA, interning at UH Hilo, and has been accepted into UH.

Then Our Youngest Daughter Fell Ill.

Just as life began to stabilize, our youngest daughter, Magdalena (Magi), became seriously ill in September. Since then, Tyler has been her full-time caregiver as well, once again pausing our family’s ability to earn income.

Job Loss and Tourism Shutdown

In the middle of all this, Hayley the sole financial provider, was unexpectedly laid off on October 2. The federal shutdown caused a severe drop in tourism, which means our family business, Akamai Adventure Tours, went from being fully booked for the holiday season to almost no bookings at all. This has left us with little to no income to pay our bills or to survive.

All compounded by the Loss of Our Beloved Dog, Benji!

In October, our family faced yet another devastating blow. Our dog Benji, our five-year-old Blue Nose Pitbull and loyal family member, suddenly lost the ability to use his hind legs. We fought for his life for days, but his condition did not improve, and we faced the heartbreaking decision to put him down. Losing him in the middle of everything else shattered us.

Why We Are Asking for Help:

Between months of lost income, medical costs, travel for hospital stays, ongoing care for both girls, and the emotional toll of losing our dog, we have fallen behind in ways we never anticipated.

This has truly been the hardest year of our lives. We are doing everything we can to regain stability, but right now we cannot do it alone.

How You Can Help?

If you are able to donate, no matter the amount, we would be deeply grateful. Every contribution helps us stabilize, cover outstanding expenses, and support MJ and Magi through continued recovery.

If donating is not possible, sharing this fundraiser is just as meaningful.

With Deep Gratitude, Thank you very much for reading our story. Thank you for your prayers, your kindness, and your compassion.

We continue to praise God for MJ’s healing and for His ongoing protection over Magi. From the bottom of our hearts, mahalo nui loa.

We promise to pay forward every act of kindness when we are able.

The Ford ʻOhana