Help Archie Govender Walk and Play Again

Hi there, my name is Alyssa and this fundraiser is for my best friend's young son, Archibald Govender, who we all call Archie. Archie is a sweet 19-month-old boy who one day stopped playing with his toys, was not moving or walking, and was quickly hospitalized in June 2024. Archie was hospitalized for over a month with a perplexing condition to all the pediatricians until he was diagnosed with a rare autoimmune disease called ADEM, triggered by an infection of unknown origin. After several MRIs, spinal taps, PEG-tube insertion for feeding, and hospital transfer to a higher level of care for plasmapheresis, Archie was finally discharged home, but with no help for his single mother, Alicia.

While Archie was home, he still didn't recover to be able to walk, hold his head up, nor talk, and the feeding tube gave him 95% of his nutrition. Alicia Govender and her closest family have been a rock, caring for Archie with a strict medication regimen, giving him physical therapy, all while attempting to work full-time. Before the Govender family saw any progress in Archie's condition, he needed to be readmitted to the hospital at the urgency of the pediatric neuro specialist for a different treatment plan. During this hospitalization, it was identified by the Infectious Disease team that Archie had a parasite, most likely a rare parasite known as "Raccoon Roundworm." Less than 50 cases have been identified in the last 40 years since discovery. Archie is now back home taking several medications still, including an anti-parasitic for 6 weeks. Archie's recovery and capability to walk, talk, and play again, hangs in the balance.

Progression has been slow and Alicia has been off work since the second hospitalization. We are all hoping the medications and parasite diagnosis came in time to save Archie's life and stop the progression of his condition. Alicia will need all the help she can get to cover the costs from his hospital stays, future therapies, and loss of salary during this difficult time.

Thank you for your time and generosity. All donations go directly to Alicia Govender to cover the aforementioned costs.