Surviving with a little help from our friends

Hi there! My name is Sheila and I'm fundraising for John and Kim L.

On 2 August, John had a very unexpected heart attack in the wee hours of the morning. After a day of extensive testing at AtlanticCare Regional Medical Center, Heart and Vascular Institute (Mainland), it was determined John has multiple arterial blockages in his heart. On Thursday, 5 August, John will be undergoing triple bypass surgery.

John recently started a new job and had been only working there two weeks when he had this heart attack. Ironically, the insurance he had from his previous job expired just four hours prior to his heart attack...leaving John without any medical coverage.

The length of John's hospital stay is unknown, and will be determined by his pain level, and initial recovery response, post-op. His time out of work is estimated to be about three months. Kim will be filing for disability for John, but if you've ever had to file, it takes about four weeks to see any funds and it's only a percentage of your paycheck.

Rent will come due. Food will be needed. Bills will need to be paid. New medications will be needed for John. Life will march forward despite the financial (and physical/mental) adversity now facing Kim and John.

My goal is to raise funds to assist Kim and John make ends meet, while John is out of work and recovering from his bypass surgery. Life isn't always kind...but our friends and loved ones are! Please consider any donation you can afford to help reduce the additional stress that will surely be felt by Kim and John as they adjust to this dramatic life change.

If you would prefer to donate via Venmo, this can be done @KimJohn-Lester

As the Beatles sang: "I get by with a little help from my friends."