Diarist Note: I am posting this on behalf of my friend Mary, who is in the most desperate situation right now. She is not part of the DailyKos community, but she is a mother in serious need right now.
Mary is facing circumstances that no one should have to go through. Since losing her home a few months ago, she has been living in a homeless shelter with her sons William (10) and Matthew (13). As if living in a shelter with her children was not bad enough, things have been piling on her over the last two months, making them even worse. Her family has been impacted, through no fault of their own, yet she continues to be strong and cheerful.
William and Matthew both suffer from a rare bone disease known as hereditary multiple exostoses (HME or MHE). From Wikipedia, "HME is estimated to occur in 1 in 50,000 people. It is characterized by the growth of cartilage-capped benign bone tumours around areas of active bone growth, particularly the metaphysis of the long bones." As these tumors break through the bone it can cause severe pain, nerve compression, circulatory issues and bone growth deficiencies. The "breakthrough" pain can be so debilitating at times that William requires morphine injections to control it.
Mary's sons are the two on the left.
On July 5th, Mary took William to the
Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare in St. Paul, MN to undergo surgery to remove a bone tumor in his leg. After surgery, Mary updated his condition with the following Facebook post:
Things went better than expected. The the [sic] top of the femur had to be adjusted inward a little over 30 degrees. He's got some plates in there that will have to be removed in about a year. He also put the plates in his knees to try to get the joint to straighten out. There weren't any obvious bumps keeping the knee from straightening, but he did remove the two on the sides, and said the plates were the best bet for getting the joint to eventually be able to extend all the way. Also, he doesn't think there's any actual limb length discrepancy, but that the issue with his hip made it appear that the left leg was longer. Now that it's been put back in the proper position, he thinks we'll see the discrepancy resolve itself. Now I'm just waiting for him to wake up so I can see him.
Despite the surgery, William was in good spirits and seemed to be recovering well. Five days later, they left the hospital and returned to the homeless shelter. It was at this time that Mary learned her oldest son, Matthew, would also need surgery to correct complications resulting from a basketball injury a couple months earlier. Mary was also informed by the shelter that she would need to rehome her two cats, Booger and Molly. The shelter allowed her to bring them with her, but eventually decided they could not stay because Mary was gone too often to tend to the medical needs of her children.
William following his recent surgery
After finding new homes for her beloved cats and getting her oldest son through surgery, Mary began to make arrangements to make a temporary move to Minneapolis, where William could get the follow-up care he needed. It was at this time that things went from bad to devastating.
William's incisions became infected and Mary had to rush him from Fargo to the St. Paul emergency room in the middle of the night. He was hospitalized and put on IV antibiotics. Mary discovered that William had picked up the infection at the homeless shelter and was advised not to return to it. At the same time, her plans to move to Minneapolis fell through, leaving her with no where else to go.
Mary is currently out of money and out of options. She has nowhere to go and both Matthew and William still require medical care. She is in process of selling all of her possessions, trying to get enough money to afford a room at an extended-stay hotel.
Mary has a backup plan, including a place to stay and a job in Oregon, but she cannot make that move until Matthew and William are well. What she needs right now is a way to stay in Minneapolis until then.
Mary also has a younger son, Stuart, who is currently being cared for by family in Florida. Mary hopes to be reunited with him as soon as her situation improves. She misses him dearly.
Mary's friends have organized a fundraising page to help her get the assistance she needs. The page can be found here. Please share it as much as you can.
If you can help Mary financially, please contribute using the following PayPal email address: mthtch@yahoo.com
If you would like to snail mail a donation to Mary or have a lead on a place where she can stay, please use this contact page, or KosMail me. All information received with be forwarded to Mary directly.