My father, a firefighter of over 30 years for Edison Township, dedicated his life to protecting others. In 2021, he had his first stroke, followed by a devastating infection, gangrene, that led to the removal of over 15 pounds from his abdomen. He has been unable to walk since, and this past year he was diagnosed with blindness due to glaucoma, which has made life even more challenging for him. Just two weeks ago, his gallbladder became infected, and he had to undergo surgery. He is still battling infection and is on around-the-clock antibiotics, which he will need to continue at home.

My mother was always such a strong person—she took care of everything, from paying the bills and making phone calls, to caring for my father and setting up our home. But now, because of her epilepsy, we don’t know if she will ever get back to the mental state she was in before. She has been having seizures for so long without diagnosis, and we are unsure if she will ever recover. Now, everything falls on me.

They adopted me when I was just 7 weeks old, and they have taken care of me my entire life, giving me everything I needed—from getting me a car to making sure I got into school. They also cared for both my Grammy and my Grandma, always putting others before themselves. They taught me how to be a caring person, and now at 20 years old I am their only child and they depend on me for care and support.

Normally, I’m not the type to ask for help, but because we don’t know how long my parents will need this care, I’m not sure how to manage everything. I feel like this is the best way to at least start. Any support would mean the world to us and would help provide them with the care they need and relieve some of the burden we are facing as a family.