Last week, Vetwife’s plate was piled to overflowing with troubles – any one of which would have been enough to send a person around the bend. It’s a testament to her strength that she is holding things together – but she really could use the help of friends to lighten her load a bit and to let her know that people care. I am posting this so that her DKos family can rally around her and lend her support.
It was a nightmare of a week – read her diary about it here. Here is a nutshell recap of what happened:
As an apt, real life metaphor for all that happened, the sewer backed up and her basement flooded, bringing a bunch of unexpected expense. Worse, working with bleach and scrubbing has left her ill – Vetwife had walking pneumonia in August and, when all this past week's misery began, her recovery from it was in no way complete. She did not have a lot of resistance going into the misery that was to follow.
This past week, Vetwife's 20 year old daughter, who suffers from diabetes and bipolar disorder, gave birth while ill with a fever. The fact that the new mother was ill led to some complications and the baby was taken to a different hospital to be put on a ventilator. The baby's hospital was many miles away, leaving the family to scramble for gas money just to get there and then for motel money to keep the new mother near her baby.
In the midst of all this stress and chaos at the hospitals, another blow fell by way of a phone call. Vetwife’s husband’s son from his first marriage was going through a divorce and had become very depressed. He shot and killed himself. Vetwife is waiting for the full horror of this to hit her husband (it hasn’t yet) – he has PTSD (100% disability) from his service in Viet Nam.
Vetwife’s church, which ought to have been her rock in this sea of troubles, was no help to her at all. Only one fellow church member has come to visit. This, as much as anything, has caused her a lot of pain.
This family is overextended financially right now. As you know, Vetwife runs a nonprofit to serve veterans, United Veterans of America. It’s important work she does, especially in her red State of Georgia, where social services are, well, to use a polite word, "insufficient". Recently, she and her husband overdrew their funds to help a veteran who was being turned out on the street. This has put their own family in a terrible squeeze, especially given what happened after. As her 5 year old daughter said, "Santa is broke."
The whole week was a hell of a ride. After a week of incredible stress and very little sleep, Vetwife is now on forced bed rest. She has a flu, a hacking cough, a fever, and now a kidney infection. This heroic woman is plumb worn out. Is it any surprise?
Christmas is coming. Let us send Vetwife some cheer. Here’s how we can help.
First, if you can spare it (and ONLY if you can spare it – Vetwife would rather curl up and die than receive from someone with needs of their own), some financial help would be a great help. Here is a PayPal link. If you would prefer to help with a check, email me and I will tell you how to do that.
Second, Vetwife could use some help raising money for her nonprofit. Veterans’ needs are outstripping what she has been able to raise. The local Georgia community is really not fertile ground for this right now – an internet outreach would be helpful. Please raise your hand in the comments if you can help her with this. It is a great cause.
Lastly and most importantly, this dear woman could use a big hug -- and if you are a praying person, your prayers. She’s tired, she’s stressed, she’s physically ill – and the loving arms of her friends will be a great comfort to her. The care and concern of this community is nothing less than a godsend to her and her family.
PAYPAL LINK TO HELP VETWIFE – THANK YOU
Namaste.