Neil and Laurie Plunkett

My name is Anna and I am fundraising for a dear friend of mine, Laurie and her son Neil. Last night, April 29, Laurie took her son to Dublin Methodist Hospital to be evaluated for a possible bowel obstruction. Unfortunately the reality was much more grim. The medical staff told her that they were not sure that he would survive the surgery, but without it, he had no chances. After a two hour long exploratory surgery, they discovered that Neil had a severely infected appendix with sections of his small intestine and colon were necrotic (dead tissue). The surgeons were able to get that cleaned out and he now has a colostomy bag in place. The outcome is still hanging in the balance. The next few days will be critical for his prognosis. Today they had a tiny victory of being able to keep his heart rate where it needed to be. If he does survive, he will eventually need another surgery to remove and reconnect the healthy parts.

Laurie is the primary caregiver for her son as a single parent. Neil is a special needs adult (he is 20) being a non-verbal autistic child. As the primary, Laurie truly needs to be present at the hospital as she can understand and communicate with him better than anyone else.

I am trying to raise $1,500 for her to pay expenses and enable her to be there and assist in the care of Neil during this time without having additional stress of worrying about work on top of having no reassurances of a good outcome. If you could find it in you to donate a few bucks to help me with this goal, all of us would be appreciative. Little amounts add up. Prayers are also welcomed and appreciated for Neil’s recovery and what limited peace of mind we can give a single mom while they fight for his life. Thank you for taking the time to read this and thinking of my friend during this incredibly difficult time.