Help for my best friend and his family
Hello my name is Steve Wilson, I’m from the north east of England and this week my world came to a standstill.
My best friend and ‘brother’ Joe, almost lost his life on Tuesday through a massive heart attack at the stupidly young age of 40.
We met 7 years ago in Phuket and became friends instantly. The friendship turned into brotherhood. We had adventures and built businesses while he brought his first child Vinni into the world on Christmas Day 2014. Shortly followed by his beautiful daughter Rita in mid 2019. His wife and mother to his kids is Sasi, a Thai national and wonderful person.
life was filled with highs and incredible lows as we, as a team, tried to forge a life through business and brotherhood in a foreign country, which is no easy task and we lent of his wife to navigate the complex structure of Thailand’s culture and laws. It’s was beautifully taxing and immensely bonding and Joe was doing this while raising two young children.
The stress of business can be crippling at times but we have such a strong bond and we play to our strengths and we endured some our the most demanding experiences. This strengthened our relationship. We built the business to a point of success and our brotherhood became bonded forever. Joe had now shifted 100% focus back to his family as the business was ticking over smoothly and he began putting in motion his plan for a better life for his children. Joe holds his family closer to his heart than any man I've met, so then next chapter in life is schooling and education for his children. Joe took the bold moved to give his children the best start in life he could which meant heading back to his roots and raising his family in Perth Australia. He left Thailand after 6 years bound for Australia in February 2020. It was heart breaking for me to see him and his family leave but the man put his family first and was prepared to do whatever he needed to offer those beautiful children the world. I was without my brother but i knew what a courageous move it was that he made. Admirable. He left in Feb 2019.
Covid hit. Lock-down came. Tourist vanished along with our beloved business we bled over to build. We lost everything. All the hours of fun and frustration and laughs and tears, gone. It was completely out of our control and we were just another statistic with millions of others across the globe.
Joe literally had to start a new life in his home country after years of being away, two young children and wife that occasionally struggled with the language, he had no home, no money, no vehicle but what he did have, somehow, is drive. Throughout all the stress of migrating he had the guts and courage to begin to rebuild. Amazing.
He began working on the tools and started a handyman business even through the pandemic he found the motivation to start a business and then BANG. Tuesday 13th July he has a massive heart attack and luckily he survived. The most staggering part is that he’s only 40.
I was rocked and scared but Joe is a fighter and made it through. Incredible but what now? What does the future hold for my brother? He suffered something you would pin on the old but no, 40.
Im doing this against Joe’s wishes as he is too proud. This Go Fund Me is to fill the gap in Joe’s life that he literally can’t fill due to his circumstances. He can’t work, he has two young children and a Thai wife that depends on him. His life goes on but so do his bills and outgoings. I am asking for financial help or assistance to see my brother and his family through their most difficult and challenging period. Every little bit helps even just sharing the story. My heart goes out to a man that has always provided and that option has been removed from him temporarily. I sent Joe 1000 gbp to his bank without his knowledge and i was first met with frustration from him and then tears as he finds it difficult to swallow his pride occasionally but then he realised the love and sentiment behind my donation to him.
Thank You
Steve
Below is a conversation, in depth about Joe’s experience.
