Honoring Rulo With Support for Talia and Girls

It is with great sadness that we are making this GFM for our daughter Talia as well as her two young children, who are facing the heartbreaking loss of their husband and father. Rulo is an amazing husband, father, son-in-law, son, brother and provider and his absence will be deeply felt by everyone who knows him. We are raising funds for the immediate costs that come with such a devastating loss: funeral, groceries, rent, bills, car insurance, possible moving expenses and trying to keep their shared vehicle. When we spoke of their car yesterday, Talia said “Oh man so hard to let go of it. It was our first real family car”. This emotional attachment is something many of us can relate to as we hold on to the things that remind us of the people we love.

Rulo was self-employed and they were living comfortably on a budget, but they’re in their 20’s and hadn’t yet established a savings. Talia, who had worked up until she had her first child in 2023, became a stay-at-home mom to Ella, then had a second child 3.5 months ago. Rulo has been the sole breadwinner for the last two years.

We adopted Talia and her sister from Bogota, Colombia in 2012 and they both attended school in Lexington, KY. While in school, Talia met Rulo in 2017 through friends and they have been happily together ever since. They both graduated with bachelor’s degrees, starting their life as a married couple in August 2021, celebrating their love with a traditional Ethiopian wedding in KY. A move by the newly married couple from KY to FL happened in the end of 2022 and in 2023 they welcomed their first adorable daughter Ella, a perfect addition to their little family.

In the fall of 2024 Rulo began experiencing concerning symptoms that prompted him to seek medical attention. After a check-up and labs they told him that he had low iron and said to take iron pills, which he did. However, in September 2024 his condition worsened and he decided to go to the ER and none of us ever expected what would follow….a cancer diagnosis. He has no family history, no smoking history, eats healthy and works out. His cancer is incredibly rare and inside of the heart, so the family had to move cities and hospitals multiple times for specialized care, which is incredibly expensive. Rulo was in the hospital for several months, including long periods in ICU.

At the time of his hospital admittance and cancer diagnosis, Talia was 8 months pregnant and had to give birth without Rulo by her side, to a very special baby girl in October 2024. Maha was born healthy and welcomed by big sister Ella, who now loves having a little sister to try and help with, at least in the best way a 22 month old can help.

For the last two months Rulo has been undergoing chemotherapy and the doctors have been saying that the results seemed positive. He had a Doctor’s appt scheduled on February 17 where they were anticipating hearing good news and hopeful updates that the chemo was continuing to keep the cancer from worsening.

On Sunday February 16, Rulo went to the ER for a headache and unfortunately they were met with the devastating and shocking news that the cancer has spread to his brain.

This sudden turn of events has left Talia in an unimaginable position, as she was holding onto hope and preparing for better news. Now, she is grappling with the reality of life without her life partner, and the father of their two young children. In this incredibly difficult time, we want to ease as much of the financial burden as possible and would greatly appreciate any donations, no matter how small, to support Talia and the girls. Every contribution, even $2, will go directly towards essential needs such as diapers, toilet paper, other household expenses and the expenses listed in the beginning paragraph.

Thank you so much for donating and if you are unable to financially donate, that’s understandable - we would then appreciate you sharing this out.

The best way for us to get the most support for Talia, Ella and Maha is by word of mouth. Please post this on all of your social accounts and encourage your family and friends to do the same on their socials as well.

With gratitude,

Evan & Dawn (Talia’s parents)