Three Siblings & The Road to Sight

Hello, everyone! 

I am creating this GoFundMe for my best friend, my person, Sandra. And her two brothers Vic and Carlos. 

I have known Sandra since 2010, and in those 8 years she has become one of the most important people in my life. We all have those one or two people in our lives that are "ride or die," family, our go to when we have incredible news or when we really need a hug. Sandra has been there by my side through thick and thin. And I want to show her how much her love and support has meant to me by hopefully getting her, and her brothers, to Canada to get the treatment they all need for their eyes. 

Sandra and her brothers have a hereditary and degenerative disease called, Retinitis Pigmentosa, "RP." 

"Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) is a family of genetic diseases leading to progressive degeneration of the retina. RP is characterized by progressive night blindness and a loss of peripheral vision (so called ‘tunnel vision’). The disease eventually involves loss of color (blue) and day vision. The majority of patients become legally blind before the age of 60..." (Wellspring Clinic for Holistic Medicine) 

Another way to put this is:

In the 8 years that I have known Sandra, her sight has gradually declined. When I first met her I would not have known she had any problem with her sight at all. She hid it well. She was slinging drinks and pouring beers like any other bar tender in the restaurant we worked in. She was still driving. And she could high five me no problem. Fast forward to today. I worry. A lot. I worry about her walking her dogs. I worry about her taking public transportation home from work at night. I worry she'll fall down the stairs from her front door because it's dark. Mostly I worry about her safety. Her loss of sight has taken away her ability to drive, to feel safe, and to high five me... Unless I wave my hand around so she can see it. 

The rods and cones in her eyes are slowly dying. And the same goes for Vic and Carlos. Both of her brothers no longer drive either. Vic used to be an AWESOME mechanic, who would never rip you off. He can no longer work on cars because his vision is to the point that he has to carry around a flashlight to see. Even during the day. Carlos has a hard time working too as he is already legally blind.  And as one would imagine, the slow loss of sight leaves all of them feeling scared and hopeless. Because without treatment, all three of them will go blind eventually. 

BUT, there is hope and hopefully with your help there will be light at the end of their tunnels! 

Dr. Weidong Yu in Vancouver specializes in traditional Chinese medicine and has had massive success in his studies and treatments for RP. Patients from all over the world have been trekking to Canada to receive treatment and care from Dr. Yu and their stories are full of hope and happiness. His patients are getting their sight back! Permanently!!! I have provided his website  and links to his patients testimonials. Please give them a look. They amazed me! 

When Sandra called to tell me about Dr. Yu's treatments you could hear the smile on her face over the phone! 

If you watch "Grey's Anatomy," then you know what I mean when I say, "My person." Sandra is my person. And I would love nothing more than to help play a role in giving her the ability to see again. Like all of us, Sandra has been through a lot. But in this past year and a half, her vision has gotten worse than I have ever seen it. I am so grateful for the beautiful people who helped her to safety during the Route 91 shooting because she was not able to see well enough to run to shelter. Seeing a friend go through things that are so painful, so scary and so out of her control... I just want to do something to take some of that fear away. 

Through all the ugliness. Sandra remains one of the happiest, glass half full, positive people I have in my life. Her laugh is infectious, and the love she shows to those around her is inspiring. Girl, you are one in a million. And I love you. 

So please, take a look at our video. Have a gander at Dr. Yu's website and watch one or two testimonials. Donating any amount of money to Sandra and her brothers would be better than any other gift the three of them could receive. If you are not able to donate money, please contribute by sharing their story, and our video. Just passing the word forward really does go a long way. 

Your money will go to travel, lodging, food, and treatment for Sandra AND her two brothers for the first year of their treatment.

Thank you so very much!



Patient Testimonial 1 
Patient Testimonial 2 
Patient Testimonial 3