Tom Clark

The Stroke

On July 30th, our dad, Tom Clark, suffered a massive stroke that caused severe damage to both hemispheres of his brain, including the frontal lobe. He was quickly life-flighted to a hospital in Chattanooga, where—after a few very scary, tearful days—he finally stabilized. Dad won the fight for his life, but this is only the beginning of a very long up-hill battle.

The Road to Recovery

Following his stroke, dad has been constantly working with physical, speech, and occupational therapists, and every single week we see improvements in small but significant ways. At the beginning of his recovery, he was completely incapable of speech or movement in any of his limbs. Through rehabilitation and occupational therapy, he gained some movement in his arms, hands, and—most recently—in his legs. Through speech therapy, our dad is now using speech, responding to both written and spoken language. Through physical therapy, he has gained more strength in his core, and is now able to whisper instead of just mouthing words, engaging in brief conversation that continues to develop in complexity. He and his therapists work hard every day so that one day he can come home.

The Costs

As our family navigates the journey of dad's recovery, we wish to prepare for the specialized treatments and rehabilitation that lie ahead. Our insurance helped tremendously to curb these costs, but unfortunately that support has come to an end. As of October 19th, our insurance ruled that we no longer qualify for care in a skilled nursing facility; however, due to the severity of his stroke, dad is not yet strong enough to come home.

Research shows that the majority of recovery following a stroke occurs within the first six months. The ability to improve during this critical period relies on dad’s individual effort and the support of his friends, family, and doctors. Therefore, our goal is to maintain his current level of therapy until February 1st, 2019, six months after the day of his stroke. 

This means that from October 19th to February 1st, we need to cover 105 days of increased daily expenses. If we remain at his current facility, the cost of supporting his recovery will come to a minimum of $75,844.65. To see a breakdown of all the costs that brought us to this total, please read "The Numbers" section at the bottom of the page.

This number may fluctuate in the coming weeks as we research other facilities and therapy programs that may be uniquely suited to dad’s recovery. Further, while our latest round of appeals to reinstate our insurance coverage for skilled nursing care have been denied thus far, we will continue to advocate for dad. If and when any changes arise that affect this estimate, we will update this page.

How To Help

Please, please, share this page. The impact of sharing this page and spreading the word with your family and friends cannot be overstated.  

If you are able to give, please know that every donation, no matter how small, will help our dad get a little closer to coming home.

And as always, we deeply appreciate your prayers.

Additional Ways to Give

We have created this page to make it convenient for our community to help. If you would like to give in person, direct all donations to our mother. If you are writing a check, please make payable to "Joanne Clark." 

If you prefer a tax deductible option, please visit Grace Chapel: Benevolent Giving. Select your desired donation and frequency of giving ("Once" is an option). When you reach the checkout page, after inputting your billing information, you must write "Thomas K. Clark Medical Fund" in the Memo line. This is how Grace Chapel knows where you intend the money to go.

Thank You

While there are many unknowns in the days ahead, we know who holds those days in His hands. Our dad is single-mindedly determined and will work hard every day to recover. We are so humbled by our community and how you all have offered your prayers and support through all of this. Thank you all, from the bottom of our hearts. You have lifted us up through the difficult times and we are forever grateful.

Love, hope, and gratitude,

— The Clark Boys: Matt, Sean, Ryan, and Jason

The Numbers

Dad requires constant, around-the-clock attention and a room with the necessary equipment for his daily care and therapy regimens. With insurance, the copay for the room at the care facility has been $169 a day, over $5,000 a month; however, insurance will no longer help cover the room. The cost of the room has risen to $300 a day—$9,000 a month.

Insurance will no longer cover daily therapy. We were told there is a chance that they will cover up to two days a week, but at the moment this is just a hope. Without insurance, the cost of providing critical occupational, physical, and speech therapy is $550 a day. For the two days that we hope insurance will continue to cover, the daily cost will remain at a $45 daily copay. Additionally, we spend about $500 a month—averaging to $16.66 a day—to provide massage therapy that has proven to be necessary in preventing dad’s contractures from worsening.

- Weekly cost of the room: 7 days at $300 each, a total of $2,100.
- Weekly cost of insured therapy: 2 days at $45 each, a total of $90.
- Weekly cost of massage therapy: $500 a month averages to $116.32 a week.
- Weekly cost of uninsured therapy: 5 days at $550 each, a total of $2,750.

Therefore, our projected expenses to support dad’s recovery will be $5,056.32 per week, which averages to $722.33 per day of care. For 105 days of partially-insured care, this means his recovery will cost a minimum of $75,844.65. The end cost will almost certainly be higher.

Finally, there are other additional expenses that are more difficult to accurately predict, such as bandages, pills, pads, and other expendables that we have not included in this estimate.

Once again, this number may fluctuate in the coming weeks as we research other facilities and therapy programs that may be uniquely suited to dad’s recovery. We will update this document with any changes that come down the road.