Ben's Medical Help Fund

As most of you know, my nephew, Benjamin Denton, was born September 26, 2015.  He was full term, but has been in the NICU since birth.  He has had breathing, neurological, metabolic, and musculoskeletal issues since birth.  His continuing seizures sometimes make breathing very difficult for him and his poor muscle tone indicates that improvement of any kind is a hard daily struggle. 

He has been on a breathing tube most of his life, but he has had recent moments of improvement where the tube has been removed and Ben breathes with minimal assistance from breathing machines.  He is still feeding through a tube but doctors are trying to slowly make Ben less dependent on the tube and more progressively able to transition to bottle feeding.  Tony and Kimberly have been able to hold him only a few times since birth and for the first few weeks, both went to University Hospital every day in order to spend every available moment with Ben – the drive to and from the hospital takes an hour and half each way.  Tony went to the hospital with Kimberly every day for a month but then had to return to work and sees Ben only on the weekends.   Kimberly is still going every day and doesn’t know when Ben will be able to come home so that she can return to work as well.  Ben has had virtually every conceivable test but his doctors are still unable to provide a diagnosis.  His brain has difficulty processing sugar so doctors are to treat Ben with a special diet that is high in fat and almost devoid of carbs.  Ben is a tough little munchkin and very much loved by everyone whose life he’s touched.  He is known for the “the best hair in the NICU.” 

Kimberly’s pregnancy seemed completely normal and showed no signs that Ben would have issues, so this was a stunning surprise and has required Tony and Kimberly to make drastic adjustments to their lives in order to prepare for Ben’s continuing fight ahead.  Hospital visits every day and middle of the night phone calls with updates have become the new normal for Kimberly and Tony.  Their life is a roller coaster ride between hope-building progress and disheartening setbacks when Ben seems to be getting stronger each day and then, without warning, he slips into a fit of seizures.

Tony and Kimberly have good medical insurance; however, there are still many expenses that aren’t covered.  Specialized tests and treatments that aren’t normally prescribed for infants, transportation  to and from the hospital, lost work income for Kimberly so that she can continue to see Ben every day he stays in the hospital, and then to take care of him at home until he is strong enough for her to return to work.  And so, I, along with the rest of Ben’s family, humbly ask you to pull together with us and help Tony, Kimberly, Samantha and Ben through this very difficult time in their lives.  All donations will go to pay medical expenses not covered by insurance and to assist Kimberly and Tony to pay for gas and parking going back and forth to the hospital every day, to offset Kimberly’s lost income to help pay normal house bills that are piling up from the family only having one income.  We also ask for your continuing prayers to get Baby Ben better and home as soon as possible.  Tony and Kimberly appreciate your prayers and well wishes for Benjamin.  Please keep them coming.