Supporting Deanna, Matt and Baby Gerhardt

Hi everyone,

My name is Joanna. I am a long time friend of Deanna and the Falconetti family. Deanna is like a sister to me and our roots run deep. We've grown up together — sharing holidays and countless formative memories. She's always been a loving, supportive constant through all the seasons of my life.

Deanna and and her wonderful husband, Matt, welcomed a healthy baby boy to this world on April 17, 2025. I will let them share more details. It’s been a long journey for them to get to this moment — filled with hope, heartache, resilience, joy and overwhelming love. They're already such amazing parents.

A few days after baby was born, Deanna began to have migraines and multiple seizures confirmed by an EEG, which led to her undergoing multiple MRI’s and a CT scan. Her results show that she has a brain tumor located in the exact same place as her previous brain tumor (15 years ago in 2010). This tumor is larger than the last, and it is unknown if it's benign or malignant at this time. Surgery is scheduled for Monday, April 28th to remove the tumor. A full recovery could take 6-12 months, and unfortunately Deanna won’t be able to return to her business for much longer than expected.

Your donations will help cover the costs of managing their daily life, lost income, childcare support during hospital stays and post-op recovery, household help, medical expenses, any therapeutic support or additional expenses that will come in the months ahead. 

Deanna and Matt are the kind of people who constantly show up for others. They are strong, kind and fiercely loved. Now, it's our turn to show up for them. My hope is that, with our collective support, they are able to focus on what is most important: rest, healing, long-term recovery and parenting their newborn baby.

Thank you in advance for coming together to encourage, inspire, and support this incredible individual and her family.

With lots of love,

Joanna