Team Tomassi

Lisa Kasprzak Chaya is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Sara Tomassi.

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This is a love story. This is a tragedy. This is a story of a good man who died too soon.

My cousin Sara was lucky in love. She met Robert when she was just nineteen years old and he was the one true love of her life. They married a few years later and their daughter, Reese, was born in 2009 and their son, Raymond James, in 2012.

Both Sara and Robert grew up in working class families. Robert immigrated to America from the Philippines when he was only thirteen. Life was not always easy, but Sara and Robert settled into a home in Levittown, worked hard at their jobs, and began raising their young family.

In 2014, Robert had an allergic reaction to a medication. His throat swelled up, and he was put on a ventilator and sedated into a medical coma for several weeks. Slowly, he battled his way back to health, but his kidneys were badly damaged.

The next few years brought a roller-coaster of health issues. The kidney damage required Robert to receive dialysis three times a week. This led to a series of surgeries to have a fistula placed into his chest. A short while later, the fistula became infected and Robert was hospitalized again, this time for sepsis.

Robert, despite his health issues, always had a smile on his face and positive word. He was a doting husband and father. Sara rarely talked about the struggles they were facing. She was optimistic and stayed focused on taking care of Robert and the children. The family lacked many things, but never love.

Eventually, Robert’s health issues made it impossible for him to work full-time and he was forced to leave his job. Sara began working two jobs to make ends meet. Sara and Robert still made time for running Girl Scout cookie sales, attending Tiger Scout events, going to soccer games, volunteering at community events, and the regular routines of parenthood.

In October of 2018, Robert was diagnosed with an infection around his heart and a hole in a valve, which led to another surgery for a heart valve replacement. The surgery was successful, and for the first time in years, Robert’s health improved to the point that he was functioning well. The family celebrated Robert’s 54th birthday. They had a happy Christmas. There was even talk that he might finally qualify for a much-needed kidney transplant.

And then fate struck its final blow. Right after the new year, Robert suffered a severe cardiac arrest and his body, weakened by years of dialysis, surgeries, and illness, simply gave out. Robert found his peace at last on January 8, 2019.

Sara is my cousin. I have watched from the wings as her story has played itself out. Sara’s approach to adversity has always been to be stronger, work harder, and stay positive. Her strength, her courage, and her grace routinely humble me.

Sara's entire life has been built around helping others. Which is why I am reaching out to YOU.

As a young widow with a full-time job, Sara is in great need of financial assistance.

-- to pay off years’ worth of medical bills,

-- to cover funeral arrangements

-- to purchase food and clothing for her growing children,

-- to keep up with the rent, the heat, and the electricity,

-- to cover the cost of after-school care for Reese and RJ

and for the multitude of other bills that come along with keeping a family afloat.

Please help us to help out Sara's family. Your donation to this family -- just $5 or $10 dollars -- will make a world of difference.

Your donation will also provide this family with some much-needed sense of HOPE.
Hope to believe that sometimes even a tragedy can have a happy ending.

When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” -- Fred Rogers

If you are not in a position to help financially, please help by sharing this story with others through emails or Facebook.

I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

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