UPDATE Dick and Germaine send heartfelt thanks for your contributions. Dick is now in an assisted living facility because of you, and the pressure is off for the moment. I still encourage those who haven't and can to please donate to the cause, they aren't out of the woods yet. Thanks!

I'm David Kennerly. Dick and Germaine Swanson are like family to me. I met them in Vietnam in 1971 when Dick was working as a LIFE photographer and Germaine for TIME Magazine. Germaine was also a paratrooper medic in the South Vietnamese Army and made several combat jumps. The two of them started Germaine's Restaurant in Washington, D.C. in 1982, which became a mecca for journalists and politicians. It was our little non-exclusive club. Germaine is tough, but she and Dick are experiencing a difficult time that even Germaine can't overcome. I'm asking the friends of Dick and Germaine to please contribute to this effort so that Dick, who is 92 and can't walk anymore, can be moved into an assisted care home. This is the last thing they ever thought would happen, but here we are. A Thanks, everyone, this will really get them off the hook.