Help Save Kelly - Mayo Clinic Trip!

My wife Kelly has spent her life helping people. From age 19-20, she moved to Amman, Jordan to volunteer, working at two schools helping children with physical  and mental disabilities , as well as outreach work throughout the Middle East.  She also later spent three weeks volunteering at a UN refugee camp in Somalia to help those wounded in the civil war, has been all over world touring and helping people.  She has been active in causes to stop child and human trafficking, and efforts to promote human and civil rights, both in her community and around the world.  She has worked tirelessly to help others, but now she cannot move forward with her life without receiving help from others.

Kelly is thirty-seven years old and disabled, but it wasn’t always that way.  Kelly was active in sports since the age of 5, and was even granted a scholarship to play college volleyball, but that dream was cut short before playing her first game as her health started taking a turn for the worse.  Now, life isn’t so easy.  She suffers from a neurological disease called Dystonia  (related to Parkinson’s), as well as DVT's (blood clots ), pulmonary embolisms  and other chronic serious pulmonary issues  keeping her reliant on oxygen, Antiphosphilipid Antibody Syndrome, digestive issues (she's lost 35 lbs in the past 6 weeks alone), neck and back issues, and chronically severe compression mega-migraines.  Medical staff has had to resuscitate her back to life three times in the past few years due to physical health problems combined with hospital mistakes.

Additionally, due to her family   joining a high-demand, abusive fundamentalist group at age 5, which Kelly tried to leave quietly at age 30, she has been shunned  by her family and friends in the group.  This has been very hard on her emotionally, and has led down a road where she also has been diagnosed and is being treated for  Complex PTSD, major depression disorder, and panic/anxiety disorder.    

Kelly has been approved to go to the Mayo Clinic  in Minnesota, regarded as one of the world’s greatest hospitals, in the hope that their cutting-edge, collaborative approach to healthcare and team of top-notch physicians can help her live a normal life. Every system in her body is either slowly shutting down or going haywire.  Her goal is quite simple – she wants to live, not merely exist.  To be able to walk without a walker or cane, to cook dinner, go back to school, hold down a job, and go on weekend trips without risking a trip to the emergency room. 

The last thing that Kelly and I ever envisioned we would be doing is asking others for financial assistance, but the $20,000 budgeted for the trip to the Mayo Clinic, along with over $100K in already incurred unpaid medical expenses, is simply too much for us to handle on our own.  Kelly’s ailments prevent her from working, and we have been waiting for nearly three years for her to go before the judge to be approved to receive SSI disability payments. 

Every donation amount helps, whether it’s monetary (whether $5 or $5,000) or in the form of airline miles or hotel rewards.  Also, please help spread the word by posting this on social media with the hashtag #HelpSaveKelly.  Thank you for your donations, your time, and your positive thoughts, ju-ju, and prayers!  We will be eternally grateful!

Please spread the word!!  Being shunned, moving to a new city, and being homebound means we need as much help and exposure as possible.  A Youtube video and Kelly's video diary through this journey, as well as updates, will be posted soon. 

We can also accept check, cash and Paypal if you prefer, and can provide that info via email (or any questions) at our email [email redacted].  And when you help spread our cause, remember to use the hastag #HelpSaveKelly!!!  Thank you SO much!!  :D