On June 18th an incident happened

My step Father John and Mum, Anne are in a situation where they need help.

They were on a trip of a life time, they had both just retired, saved all their lives for and were on the last leg of their trip in Chigaco, USA when....

On June 18th an incident happened where John was found at the bottom of stairs around the back of the Hotel (he told Anne he was going to the toilet).

We do not know who found him, how long he had been there or what happened. BUT he was unconscious, no physical evidence to prove there was a fall, no witnesses and no cameras.

John was rushed to Hospital where it was discovered that he suffered severe brain trauma to the left, right and back of his head. He was put into an induced coma, in the nureocritical care unit.

John has had multiple operations: -Removal of skull -Holes drill to drain build up of fluid and blood -Tracheotomy -awaiting replacement of skull

John has also suffered setbacks contracting pneumonia twice, his blood pressure and temperature and still causing issues.

We hope that the replacement of skull will be the last operation John needs to face.

Unfortunately their travel insurance will not cover costs due to John having alcohol in his system. This has caused alot of stress for (Mum) Anne.

Knowing that multiple operations which in turn costs hundreds of thousands and every night in the hospital cost tens of thousands. Scary and devastating for anyone travelling with insurance let alone retirees.

Regardless of this outcome, LIFE will now be forever changed. Mum will now be a full time carer of John and John has suffered brain damage to which extent we are still uncertain.

Mum and John must remain in Chicago until we figure out a solution to bring them home. They desperately need help with ongoing medical bills. We need to get them home to Melbourne, Australia.

To have the support they need and to be with family and friends. Medical support is still needed for John and will be ongoing.

For his journey home, we need to secure a placement before a flight home can be arranged. Hospitals are unwilling to help him and our only option will be a nursing home.

I wouldn't wish this upon anyone. I want people to be aware of their policies, read the fine print. Contact the insurance company and make enquiries, and always remember there is support out there.

I did GoFundMe because even with donations of help for my family we need to get John home where he belongs with the ones who love and can care for him. We still want to raise awareness of their situation and how something can so quickly turn to tradegy.