Moises' Medical Expenses Fund
Donation protected
Updated post:
My brother Moises has been in the hospital since March 4th. A foot wound led to a massive infection that went into the bone and his bloodstream. On March 7th, they amputated his right leg below the knee. He had various other health issues that complicated matters, but he's worked very hard to heal and become stronger. A skin graft in April has helped to speed his recovery. He's due to be released from the rehab hospital on Sunday, May 21st.
As his only family and caregiver, I’ve been taking intermittent leave from work. I left my part time job on the weekends and greatly reduced hours at my full time job. When he comes home, I'll be taking 3 weeks of unpaid leave to help him adjust to life post-hospital and to figure out how to make our tiny apartment a space he can independently navigate when I return to work.
There are some things we need urgently:
*Accesibility equipment, some exercise equipment to work on his strength, and a few pieces of furniture
*Help with living expenses for those 3 weeks
All donations are welcome and incredibly appreciated. If you would prefer to make other arrangements—for example, pre-pay for a future workshop or manuscript consultation, please contact me.
My depest thanks.
------------------------
Original Post:
My brother Moises has been in the hospital since March 4th. A foot wound led to a massive infection that went into the bone and his bloodstream. On March 7th, they did a below the knee amputation on his right leg. He came out of surgery well, but still had to fight the infection in his bloodstream and the pneumonia he developed. He’s also been diagnosed with lymphatic disease which affects blood circulation and leads to a lot of fluid retention in the muscle. Even after three weeks, the doctors have no idea how long it may take him to heal...the last estimate was possibly months. His leg is connected to a machine called a wound-vac that is draining blood and other fluids from his leg. Some people are only on that machine for days or a couple weeks. The doctors are saying that in his case it will be months as they wait for the wound to heal from the inside out. We are currently waiting for him to be well enough to transfer to a rehabilitation hospital where he will stay for an unknown amount of time.
For those of you who don't know my brother, he is a beautiful soul--devoted gardener, self-taught painter, amazing cook--incredibly creative and deeply insightful. He hates taking photos, which is why I shared the photo of a hibiscus above. He has been my my best friend and best editor for the last fifteen years. Every day I am so moved to see how hard he is working to heal and get stronger.
As his only family and caregiver, I’m taking intermittent leave from work. I left my part time job on the weekends and halved my hours at my full time job, so I’ve gone from working 60 hours a week to 20. I don’t know if or when I’ll be able to go back to full time hours or what he’ll need in terms of care when he finally does come home.
I didn't start a campaign earlier because I really didn’t know what to ask for. I do know, however, that the list of what we’ll need is growing.
*Transfer fees to move from 2nd floor apartment to 1st floor
*Apt complex is willing to make 1st floor apt wheelchair accessible, but I will be responsible for any costs.
*Wheelchair, toileting chair, new bed, other equipment as needed in home. (He’s 6’ 4” and is a big guy, so no standard equipment is going to work.)
*Lost wages are accumulating. In addition to the lost hours at my full time and part time jobs, I am also a writer who tours, reads, and leads workshops at various colleges and for various community groups. I’m trying to honor as many of those commitments in the future as possible, but have already had to cancel several readings that included honoraria.
*If anyone has a car they’re not using that they could lend me for a while, that would be incredibly helpful. It doesn’t have to fit him or a wheelchair, just me. It would help immensely with working the hours I can, moving to the new apartment, and with crossing town (his rehabilitation hospital may be in far north Austin). While Austin does have a bus system, the difference in travel time is immense. A 10-15 minute drive from the hospital to my job takes approximately an hour and fifteen minutes by bus.
All donations are welcome and incredibly appreciated. If you would prefer to make other arrangements—for example, pre-pay for a future workshop or manuscript consultation, please contact me.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
My brother Moises has been in the hospital since March 4th. A foot wound led to a massive infection that went into the bone and his bloodstream. On March 7th, they amputated his right leg below the knee. He had various other health issues that complicated matters, but he's worked very hard to heal and become stronger. A skin graft in April has helped to speed his recovery. He's due to be released from the rehab hospital on Sunday, May 21st.
As his only family and caregiver, I’ve been taking intermittent leave from work. I left my part time job on the weekends and greatly reduced hours at my full time job. When he comes home, I'll be taking 3 weeks of unpaid leave to help him adjust to life post-hospital and to figure out how to make our tiny apartment a space he can independently navigate when I return to work.
There are some things we need urgently:
*Accesibility equipment, some exercise equipment to work on his strength, and a few pieces of furniture
*Help with living expenses for those 3 weeks
All donations are welcome and incredibly appreciated. If you would prefer to make other arrangements—for example, pre-pay for a future workshop or manuscript consultation, please contact me.
My depest thanks.
------------------------
Original Post:
My brother Moises has been in the hospital since March 4th. A foot wound led to a massive infection that went into the bone and his bloodstream. On March 7th, they did a below the knee amputation on his right leg. He came out of surgery well, but still had to fight the infection in his bloodstream and the pneumonia he developed. He’s also been diagnosed with lymphatic disease which affects blood circulation and leads to a lot of fluid retention in the muscle. Even after three weeks, the doctors have no idea how long it may take him to heal...the last estimate was possibly months. His leg is connected to a machine called a wound-vac that is draining blood and other fluids from his leg. Some people are only on that machine for days or a couple weeks. The doctors are saying that in his case it will be months as they wait for the wound to heal from the inside out. We are currently waiting for him to be well enough to transfer to a rehabilitation hospital where he will stay for an unknown amount of time.
For those of you who don't know my brother, he is a beautiful soul--devoted gardener, self-taught painter, amazing cook--incredibly creative and deeply insightful. He hates taking photos, which is why I shared the photo of a hibiscus above. He has been my my best friend and best editor for the last fifteen years. Every day I am so moved to see how hard he is working to heal and get stronger.
As his only family and caregiver, I’m taking intermittent leave from work. I left my part time job on the weekends and halved my hours at my full time job, so I’ve gone from working 60 hours a week to 20. I don’t know if or when I’ll be able to go back to full time hours or what he’ll need in terms of care when he finally does come home.
I didn't start a campaign earlier because I really didn’t know what to ask for. I do know, however, that the list of what we’ll need is growing.
*Transfer fees to move from 2nd floor apartment to 1st floor
*Apt complex is willing to make 1st floor apt wheelchair accessible, but I will be responsible for any costs.
*Wheelchair, toileting chair, new bed, other equipment as needed in home. (He’s 6’ 4” and is a big guy, so no standard equipment is going to work.)
*Lost wages are accumulating. In addition to the lost hours at my full time and part time jobs, I am also a writer who tours, reads, and leads workshops at various colleges and for various community groups. I’m trying to honor as many of those commitments in the future as possible, but have already had to cancel several readings that included honoraria.
*If anyone has a car they’re not using that they could lend me for a while, that would be incredibly helpful. It doesn’t have to fit him or a wheelchair, just me. It would help immensely with working the hours I can, moving to the new apartment, and with crossing town (his rehabilitation hospital may be in far north Austin). While Austin does have a bus system, the difference in travel time is immense. A 10-15 minute drive from the hospital to my job takes approximately an hour and fifteen minutes by bus.
All donations are welcome and incredibly appreciated. If you would prefer to make other arrangements—for example, pre-pay for a future workshop or manuscript consultation, please contact me.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Organizer
Ire'ne Lara Silva
Organizer
Austin, TX
