Urgent for Charlie & Ethan's House
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I want to tell you about a very special person, Charley T. Jones JR. He may not only has been a friend and mentor to me but also one of the biggest advocates for the schoolchildren of the Navajo Nation. That commitment and self-sacrifice, however, has meant that he has fallen on some hard times. Charley has always been one to give back to his community. But he is also a loving father who has worked hard to make a home for his 19-year-old paraplegic son, Ethan. Charley didn’t want to ask for help, but sometimes a person just needs a little boost to get back on track.
Ethan Jones was a boy with a dream--that a boy who grew up on the Navajo Reservation in New Mexico could play Major League Baseball. He was good, too, and on his school team, he showed he could steal bases--like his idol, New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter. That dream seemed ever more attainable when his older brother Malan scored a football scholarship to the University of Nebraska.
In July 2011, when Ethan was 14 years old, he suffered a traumatic brain injury that left him in a coma for two months. When he finally opened his eyes, he could not talk nor move. After three months of hospital and rehab treatment, Ethan’s doctors gave Charley a grim prognosis that his son would never recover--that he would never eat regular food, drink from a cup, speak, sit up or walk again. Charley brought Ethan home in November 2011. He held his hand for long hours, day and night, slept beside him, and told him stories about his own childhood and, as he says, “growing up Navajo in a white world.”
Five months later in April 2012, that father’s love elicited a miracle. Ethan blinked his eyes. About three weeks later, he spoke his first word: “Don’t.” Now the boy who was never supposed to talk again, “will talk your ears off,” his father will tell you with that big Charley grin. And his favorite topic hasn’t changed—baseball, the New York Yankees and Derek Jeter!
Malan gave up his football scholarship and stayed home to help care for Ethan. For the past almost four years, he and Charley patiently have assisted Ethan with every activity of daily living. They also help him do daily exercises to relearn how to use his muscles. At first Ethan was like a newborn baby. When he tried to sit up, he would fold up and fall back down. Now he can sit and even stand, but he needs assistance to do so because his muscles still often won’t obey him. He cannot walk, but he tries hard and he has some mobility around and outside the house thanks to a wheelchair. The doctors have told Charley they cannot believe that Ethan has recovered as much as he has. One morning, Charley says he hopes Ethan will wake him up with a loud “hey look, Dad!” and he’ll find his son sitting up in bed all by himself.
Last winter, Charley gave up his job as liaison for the Central Consolidated School District (CCSD), based in Shiprock, NM, because many people asked him to do so. We told him that we believed a good man like him could do more as a member of the school board to protect and continue the great gains our Navajo children are making. He won the election and became president of the CCSD school board. I have worked closely with him and as one of the youngest members of the school board, I have found him to be a model for prioritizing the needs of our Navajo children. Whenever I have needed any guidance, he has been there for me.
Unfortunately being a school board member provides only $190/month in compensation. Charley thought he had another job lined up after the elections to supplement that tiny income, but because of problems and delays with the main Navajo Nation election and all the changes in Window Rock, that opportunity didn’t happen. He has been looking for a job tirelessly, but it’s a tough time right now in northwest New Mexico. Jobs are not plentiful.
Ethan receives Social Security Disability checks, and Medicaid pays his medical costs, as well as providing some support to Malan as a home health provider. But Charley’s school board salary and Malan’s payments barely cover groceries and gas--crucial to make sure that Ethan won’t miss medical appointments. Without a steady job, Charley is five months behind with his monthly mortgage payments for his home, and his mortgage company has raised his payments from $415 to $630/month. If he does not get up to date with his payments (he now owes $2700), the mortgage company has said they will start foreclosure procedures in as soon as two weeks and he will lose his home.
Without a stable home adapted for the care of a disabled person, he won’t be able to provide the critical care needed for Ethan. Charley has owned this home for 19 years, and Ethan has never lived anywhere else.
Utility bills are also very expensive because Ethan’s body is no longer able to regulate heat and cold and Charley needs to run an extra fan or space heater. Many months his electricity bill has been $300 or more.
I know money is tight for many of us, but I am making a humble plea. Whatever you can spare will go a long way to helping Charley get back on his feet so that he, Ethan and Malan can keep their home. Any amount (large, medium or small) will be much appreciated. Even $5 or $10 adds up and can go a long way.
Charley has been there for our Navajo children. Let’s pull together so he can continue to be there for them.
Thank you very much and God bless.
--Adam
Ethan Jones was a boy with a dream--that a boy who grew up on the Navajo Reservation in New Mexico could play Major League Baseball. He was good, too, and on his school team, he showed he could steal bases--like his idol, New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter. That dream seemed ever more attainable when his older brother Malan scored a football scholarship to the University of Nebraska.
In July 2011, when Ethan was 14 years old, he suffered a traumatic brain injury that left him in a coma for two months. When he finally opened his eyes, he could not talk nor move. After three months of hospital and rehab treatment, Ethan’s doctors gave Charley a grim prognosis that his son would never recover--that he would never eat regular food, drink from a cup, speak, sit up or walk again. Charley brought Ethan home in November 2011. He held his hand for long hours, day and night, slept beside him, and told him stories about his own childhood and, as he says, “growing up Navajo in a white world.”
Five months later in April 2012, that father’s love elicited a miracle. Ethan blinked his eyes. About three weeks later, he spoke his first word: “Don’t.” Now the boy who was never supposed to talk again, “will talk your ears off,” his father will tell you with that big Charley grin. And his favorite topic hasn’t changed—baseball, the New York Yankees and Derek Jeter!
Malan gave up his football scholarship and stayed home to help care for Ethan. For the past almost four years, he and Charley patiently have assisted Ethan with every activity of daily living. They also help him do daily exercises to relearn how to use his muscles. At first Ethan was like a newborn baby. When he tried to sit up, he would fold up and fall back down. Now he can sit and even stand, but he needs assistance to do so because his muscles still often won’t obey him. He cannot walk, but he tries hard and he has some mobility around and outside the house thanks to a wheelchair. The doctors have told Charley they cannot believe that Ethan has recovered as much as he has. One morning, Charley says he hopes Ethan will wake him up with a loud “hey look, Dad!” and he’ll find his son sitting up in bed all by himself.
Last winter, Charley gave up his job as liaison for the Central Consolidated School District (CCSD), based in Shiprock, NM, because many people asked him to do so. We told him that we believed a good man like him could do more as a member of the school board to protect and continue the great gains our Navajo children are making. He won the election and became president of the CCSD school board. I have worked closely with him and as one of the youngest members of the school board, I have found him to be a model for prioritizing the needs of our Navajo children. Whenever I have needed any guidance, he has been there for me.
Unfortunately being a school board member provides only $190/month in compensation. Charley thought he had another job lined up after the elections to supplement that tiny income, but because of problems and delays with the main Navajo Nation election and all the changes in Window Rock, that opportunity didn’t happen. He has been looking for a job tirelessly, but it’s a tough time right now in northwest New Mexico. Jobs are not plentiful.
Ethan receives Social Security Disability checks, and Medicaid pays his medical costs, as well as providing some support to Malan as a home health provider. But Charley’s school board salary and Malan’s payments barely cover groceries and gas--crucial to make sure that Ethan won’t miss medical appointments. Without a steady job, Charley is five months behind with his monthly mortgage payments for his home, and his mortgage company has raised his payments from $415 to $630/month. If he does not get up to date with his payments (he now owes $2700), the mortgage company has said they will start foreclosure procedures in as soon as two weeks and he will lose his home.
Without a stable home adapted for the care of a disabled person, he won’t be able to provide the critical care needed for Ethan. Charley has owned this home for 19 years, and Ethan has never lived anywhere else.
Utility bills are also very expensive because Ethan’s body is no longer able to regulate heat and cold and Charley needs to run an extra fan or space heater. Many months his electricity bill has been $300 or more.
I know money is tight for many of us, but I am making a humble plea. Whatever you can spare will go a long way to helping Charley get back on his feet so that he, Ethan and Malan can keep their home. Any amount (large, medium or small) will be much appreciated. Even $5 or $10 adds up and can go a long way.
Charley has been there for our Navajo children. Let’s pull together so he can continue to be there for them.
Thank you very much and God bless.
--Adam
Organizer and beneficiary
Adam J. Begaye
Organizer
Shiprock, NM
Charlie Jones
Beneficiary