Relief for Jay Vogel

My name is Kirby Shroeder and I am creating this GoFundMe campaign for my friend and partner, Jay Vogel. You may know Jay from his days at James Madison High School in Brooklyn in the late 70s/ early 80s. You may know him from his college years at The University of Chicago or from law school at UCLA. You may remember him from his time as an attorney at Pillsburry Madison & Sutro. Maybe you know him from his careers at The Walt Disney Company as Senior Counsel Real Estate and later as Vice President Business and Legal Affairs Walt Disney Feature Animation. Or perhaps you might know him from his two decades as the owner of the Law Office of Jay M. Vogel. However you may know him, Jay could really use your help now.

Jay has endured a number of medical problems as he has gotten older: from testing HIV+ in 1994 and his AIDS diagnosis as of 2007 through neurosyphilis in 2011 and most recently through rectal and skin cancers in 2021, he has handled each in its turn. He had to give up his law practice long before he reached his income potential, and used up his resources and credit trying to keep himself afloat without it. Following long periods of hospitalization while recovering from cancer treatment, Jay developed pressure wounds that kept him from walking and is now so weak that he cannot leave his bed unassisted. He manages to use his wheelchair only when absolutely necessary.

Jay's Medicare has covered the cost of his numerous hospitalizations and doctor visits along with the cost of most of his medication. However, it does not cover the cost of the extensive physical therapy or home nursing care he needs if he is to have any quality of life worth living. Until recently, Jay's overall positive demeanor has carried him through life's many challenges. Jay has always been a fighter and he has no intention of surrendering now, but this is a long-term and very costly battle. Today Jay weighs 115 lbs, is unable to stand or walk on his own and is wheelchair bound. His disability income doesn't come close to covering all of his necessary costs and expenses, nor to providing him with any reasonable quality of life. I have known Jay for over twenty years and it saddens me greatly to see him struggle every single day.

Jay needs in-home nursing care to monitor and improve his overall health. He needs daily physical and occupational therapy to improve his strength and flexibility. And most importantly, he needs a new home close to his doctors and therapists that provides a reasonable quality of life for a man that is not ready to throw in the towel.

For the past seven years Jay and I have been living in an apartment that is not accessible to someone with his disabilities. The only way to get him to his doctors' appointments has been by lifting him up and down multiple flights of stairs in his wheelchair which has been terrifying to the point that we have decided we need to relocate to a new apartment with either ground floor access or an elevator. We have moved out of our old home, but are still searching for a new one.

In Septenber of this year (2023) Jay turned sixty. He never planned on becoming disabled at such an early age. But things have not work out as planned. If he is to get the help he needs and live in modest comfort he will need significant help from those who remember him fondly and have the means to make this happen. Jay will not recover without this help.

Jay would also just love to hear from you, whoever you are and however you may have known him. He often feels disconnected. Whether or not you decide to donate to this campaign, please consider giving him a phone call to let him know you are thinking of him and are wishing him well. Call him soon. Call him today, even! He's not busy!