Hey guys Luis here, I’m nena son and I’m here to ask for your guy’s help. If you live or lived in Roanoke you definitely know who Nena is. My mom moved here in 1994 and planted her roots here. She started working at her brothers restaurant and has worked there for many years. In that time she has made many bonds and relationships that still hold to this day. My mom has given her best years of her life to the community and has always worked no matter what condition she was facing. In January 2024, they discovered she had stage 2 breast cancer. My mother was told immediately she would have to have surgery to remove the lump on her breast. On the day of surgery my mother was told they discovered the cancer had spread and they needed to remove the whole breast. This was scary with my mom being diabetic it’s difficult for her body to heal quickly than another person. She had the operation and everything went good. She was told she would still have to do rounds of chemotherapy but first the wound would need to heal. In the coming mouths my mother struggled post surgery with infections and the wound not wanting to close but eventually she overcame that and it was time to start chemotherapy. The first couple chemo rounds were tough but this did not stop my mother from working. We as a family always would tell her to slow down and not work but she was determined to work and helped out the restaurant no matter what shape she was in. In the coming months my mother slowly started becoming weaker and weaker. She was having issues walking and was feeling sick most days. This was understandable with how many rounds of chemo she was taking. On September my mother was coming home from work, and when she was making her way up the steps her knees buckled and she fell on the concrete floor. My mother busted her head open and was cut throughout her arms. It was a scary situation but like everything else my mom overcame and got back on her feet to kick cancer in the butt. On November my mother was scheduled to take her final chemo and later on she would start radiation. After the final chemo my mom started to feel unwell and was in alot of pain. She went to the hospital and to everyone’s surprise the doctor admitted her for pneumonia. They told her that she had a really bad infection so my mom was in the hospital for days and on the 3rd day she was having a very hard time breathing so the doctor decided to put her on the ventilator. The doctors told the family it wasn’t looking good and that we should prepare for the worst. The vent was at 80% and when the machine is at 100% that means the machine is breathing for you. We did what we could only do and that was pray. We stayed hopeful and two days later my my was taken off the vent and off the medically induced coma. The doctor made this decision because she made great progress and thankfully my mother did a full 180. We weren’t out of the woods yet but she made great progress. My mother still had to stay in the hospital for weeks until the infection was clear. While at the hospital my mom noticed she would get these pains that would move from her waist to her feet. She described it as cramps or being electrocuted. She would experience these pains from time to time so the doctor did a ct scan and discovered she had 5 fractured disc in her lumbar spine. These pains she was experiencing was due to nerve pain. This issue and her being in coma also affected her ability to walk. On Christmas Day my mom was released and we were relieved and thankful we could spend the holidays with her. Unfortunately at that time we didn’t know how to deal with her pain and the pain meds didn’t seem to help. During this time my mom would go back and forth to the hospital. My mothers insurance covers most cost but some things aren’t covered and has been some what of a burden on the family. Due to the fact of my mother’s fractured back physical therapy was impossible because of the pain my mom would experience so we had to put that on hold. My mom has been bed bound since November and it’s been tough but as a family we have managed and adapted to her needs. When my mom got to feeling better we decided to seek treatment for her back. Due to the medication my mom is prescribed she is required to go into the office. We didn’t know how that was possible due to the fact she can’t walk and there was no way she could tolerate a car ride due to her back. My brother did some research and found out that you can hire an ambulance ride that will take you to wherever you need to go. We were under the impression that the insurance would cover everything or at least half. Unfortunately the insurance only covers in case of emergencies, which makes no sense, but it is what it is. Since my mother has to go to the doctors appointment our family has paid thousands of dollars out of pocket for a ride from Roanoke to Lagrange. We knew this wouldn’t be the last time she would need this service because if we wanted to seek treatment for her back, we would have to go back to all her doctors appointments. We as a family are coming her to ask for your help for transportation cost. It’s very hard for my family to ask for help but it’s okay to ask for help when needed. This has been a tough fight for my mom but we feel with doctors visits and physical therapy she will overcome this just like all the other obstacles she has overcome in life. My mom has gave a lot to this community. She’s always helped people and is the sweetest person I know. My mom has a lot of pride and feels a little shameful when asking for help but none of that matters to me. She has done so much for others and hopefully everything she has done good comes back to her. Whatever you guys can help with will be greatly appreciated. If you’ve tried to reach out to my mother and you haven’t heard nothing please take no offense. She has her good days and bad days and doesn’t feel like talking on her bad ones but when she has those good days, I’ll let her know to get back in touch with you. Thank you guys and I know she will overcome this!