Support the Martinez Family
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Help Lea take care of her family, including her wheelchair-bound son and her mother going through chemo treatment for cancer, all during COVID-19. A fully accessible space is an expensive but essential need for Lea’s family, but she needs our support to make it happen. Read the Martinez’s story below, and consider donating to support this beautiful family.
THE STORY
Lea Martinez is a mother of six and grandmother to three, living in East Palo Alto California. She is the sole caretaker for her family, including her mother Glenda who is going through cancer treatment and lives nearby, her 16 year old son Austin who is unable to walk due to an accident, her 15 year old daughter Carmella, and her two grandsons—Jonathan and Gabriel—who have been in her care since birth. Lea and her family have seen more than their share of tragedy and heartbreak in the past several years...
June 2014: Lea’s dad passed away, leaving Lea the responsibility of caring for her mother Glenda. The loss also left Lea looking for childcare for her two young grandsons, Jonathan and Gabriel, as Glenda has been looking after the boys while Lea worked full time. Lea took over the care of the boys, as well as taking on responsibility for her mom’s financial and medical care. All while the family coped with their grief.
[Lea's parents, Donald and Glenda, with their grandsons Jonathan and Gabriel before Donald's passing.]
August 2014: Lea obtained official custody of her two grandsons, Jonathan & Gabriel. This allowed her to put them in preschool and support the boys to the best of her ability, since her mom was no longer caring for them. Lea’s daughter had been unable to care for her sons, so Lea had been the primary caregiver for both boys since they were born (in 2011 and 2012). Having custody made it official that she had two more children to support on her own.
January 2016: Lea’s husband, Chris, passed away suddenly. Lea was left alone with the responsibility of supporting and caring for her mom, kids and grandkids, with only one income.
[Lea and Chris Martinez on their wedding day; Chris with their youngest daughter Carmella, and their grandsons Jonathan and Gabriel]
October 2017: Lea’s son, Austin, was in a bike accident and rushed to the hospital. Due to complications during surgery and treatment, there was a loss of oxygen to Austin’s brain. This affected his speech and movement control, rendering unable to walk or communicate, although cognitively there was no damage. Austin spent a total of nine months in the hospital and in a rehab facility. He has since regained much of his speech and upper body movement, and is still working on walking! Lea stayed with Austin in the hospital and rehab facility the entire time, never leaving his side. Her mother Glenda helped care for the other children at home, with help from other family and friends.
[Austin Martinez before his accident, in the hospital, and during therapy]
May 2018: Austin was finally able to return home, meaning that Lea became his full-time caretaker on top of all her other responsibilities. She gets him up and ready for the day, takes him to all his therapy appointments, handles all his medications, bathes and changes him, and personally sees to every detail of his care. All this in a house that was never designed to be accessible for someone wheelchair-bound.
September 2019: Lea’s oldest daughter, Toyita, passed away at the age of 26. Lea lost her daughter, and Gabriel and Jonathan (ages 7 and 8) lost their mother.
[Toyita Martinez with her son Gabriel, and with her son Jonathan]
November 2019: Lea’s mom, Glenda, receives a diagnosis for her uterine cancer.
February 2020: Glenda begins chemo treatment for her cancer. Lea attends every doctor’s appointment and consultation with her, takes her to every treatment, and cares for her as she recovers.
March 2020: COVID-19 adds one more stressor to Lea’s endless responsibilities. All the kids are home from school, so Lea is caring for all of the kids 24/7. She still has to take her mom to her chemo treatments and take care of her afterwards, but all of that is more difficult now.
THE NEED
As Lea continues to juggle all the needs of her family, she has realized that their home is simply not adequate for everyone, especially Austin. The house is not wheelchair accessible, and Austin struggles to navigate himself. He cannot even enter the bathroom, which is the only one and is shared by everyone in the home. Lea’s bedroom doubles as a storage unit, and the other three kids have to share a small bedroom together. Austin’s equipment and supplies fill his whole room, as well as the living room. The flooring in Austin’s bedroom, which was hurriedly installed as the family prepared for his return from rehab, is now falling apart. The cracks and holes create serious hazards for Austin as he tries to navigate his wheelchair, and for Lea as she operates the lift that gets him in and out of bed. Lea is also realizing her mother can no longer live alone, even with family nearby. As Glenda requires increasing medical care, it is crucial for Lea to be close enough to provide the right support. Glenda’s home is not safely accessible either, and she has fallen several times.
In order to solve these space and accessibility issues, Lea is hoping to build a 2 bedroom/1 bath ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) on her property. The unit would be completely handicap accessible, with bedrooms for both Austin and Glenda. This would enable Lea to have her mother live with the family, as well as a much more live-able space for Austin. The ADU would have its own fully accessible bathroom, which would make a huge difference as Lea continues to care for son and mother. Austin’s bedroom would be big enough to house his bed, wheelchair, lift and other therapy equipment. It is crucial to create a space where both Austin and Glenda can maneuver safely and where Lea can be close enough to her mom to support her. While there are additional costs incurred to ensure a fully accessible ADU (the modifications will add about $50,000 to the typical $250,000 cost), it will be a life-changing blessing for the Martinez family.
As Lea faces this huge need as a single-income family, she knows she does not have the ability to make this happen on her own. It is time for long-term, sustainable solutions for her family, and Lea is determined to provide what she knows Glenda and Austin need. But she will need help.
There have been so many times in the past five years that Lea and her family could have just given up completely. Yet somehow their faith in God, their love for one another, and their indomitable spirit has only grown. Lea seems superhuman in her ability to wake up every day and love and care for her family, in spite of tragedy, overwhelming obstacles and lack of resources. But no human is meant to face the world without support from their community and those that love them. Everyone reaches a point where you simply cannot go on without help from others. Lea needs her community to help her, so that she can continue to take care of Glenda, Austin, Carmella, Jonathan, Gabriel, and all the family and friends that turn to her in their own times of need. Please consider donating to support the Martinez family and make the accessible ADU a reality for them.
THE STORY
Lea Martinez is a mother of six and grandmother to three, living in East Palo Alto California. She is the sole caretaker for her family, including her mother Glenda who is going through cancer treatment and lives nearby, her 16 year old son Austin who is unable to walk due to an accident, her 15 year old daughter Carmella, and her two grandsons—Jonathan and Gabriel—who have been in her care since birth. Lea and her family have seen more than their share of tragedy and heartbreak in the past several years...
June 2014: Lea’s dad passed away, leaving Lea the responsibility of caring for her mother Glenda. The loss also left Lea looking for childcare for her two young grandsons, Jonathan and Gabriel, as Glenda has been looking after the boys while Lea worked full time. Lea took over the care of the boys, as well as taking on responsibility for her mom’s financial and medical care. All while the family coped with their grief.
[Lea's parents, Donald and Glenda, with their grandsons Jonathan and Gabriel before Donald's passing.]August 2014: Lea obtained official custody of her two grandsons, Jonathan & Gabriel. This allowed her to put them in preschool and support the boys to the best of her ability, since her mom was no longer caring for them. Lea’s daughter had been unable to care for her sons, so Lea had been the primary caregiver for both boys since they were born (in 2011 and 2012). Having custody made it official that she had two more children to support on her own.
January 2016: Lea’s husband, Chris, passed away suddenly. Lea was left alone with the responsibility of supporting and caring for her mom, kids and grandkids, with only one income.
[Lea and Chris Martinez on their wedding day; Chris with their youngest daughter Carmella, and their grandsons Jonathan and Gabriel]October 2017: Lea’s son, Austin, was in a bike accident and rushed to the hospital. Due to complications during surgery and treatment, there was a loss of oxygen to Austin’s brain. This affected his speech and movement control, rendering unable to walk or communicate, although cognitively there was no damage. Austin spent a total of nine months in the hospital and in a rehab facility. He has since regained much of his speech and upper body movement, and is still working on walking! Lea stayed with Austin in the hospital and rehab facility the entire time, never leaving his side. Her mother Glenda helped care for the other children at home, with help from other family and friends.
[Austin Martinez before his accident, in the hospital, and during therapy]May 2018: Austin was finally able to return home, meaning that Lea became his full-time caretaker on top of all her other responsibilities. She gets him up and ready for the day, takes him to all his therapy appointments, handles all his medications, bathes and changes him, and personally sees to every detail of his care. All this in a house that was never designed to be accessible for someone wheelchair-bound.
September 2019: Lea’s oldest daughter, Toyita, passed away at the age of 26. Lea lost her daughter, and Gabriel and Jonathan (ages 7 and 8) lost their mother.
[Toyita Martinez with her son Gabriel, and with her son Jonathan]November 2019: Lea’s mom, Glenda, receives a diagnosis for her uterine cancer.
February 2020: Glenda begins chemo treatment for her cancer. Lea attends every doctor’s appointment and consultation with her, takes her to every treatment, and cares for her as she recovers.
March 2020: COVID-19 adds one more stressor to Lea’s endless responsibilities. All the kids are home from school, so Lea is caring for all of the kids 24/7. She still has to take her mom to her chemo treatments and take care of her afterwards, but all of that is more difficult now.
THE NEED
As Lea continues to juggle all the needs of her family, she has realized that their home is simply not adequate for everyone, especially Austin. The house is not wheelchair accessible, and Austin struggles to navigate himself. He cannot even enter the bathroom, which is the only one and is shared by everyone in the home. Lea’s bedroom doubles as a storage unit, and the other three kids have to share a small bedroom together. Austin’s equipment and supplies fill his whole room, as well as the living room. The flooring in Austin’s bedroom, which was hurriedly installed as the family prepared for his return from rehab, is now falling apart. The cracks and holes create serious hazards for Austin as he tries to navigate his wheelchair, and for Lea as she operates the lift that gets him in and out of bed. Lea is also realizing her mother can no longer live alone, even with family nearby. As Glenda requires increasing medical care, it is crucial for Lea to be close enough to provide the right support. Glenda’s home is not safely accessible either, and she has fallen several times.
In order to solve these space and accessibility issues, Lea is hoping to build a 2 bedroom/1 bath ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) on her property. The unit would be completely handicap accessible, with bedrooms for both Austin and Glenda. This would enable Lea to have her mother live with the family, as well as a much more live-able space for Austin. The ADU would have its own fully accessible bathroom, which would make a huge difference as Lea continues to care for son and mother. Austin’s bedroom would be big enough to house his bed, wheelchair, lift and other therapy equipment. It is crucial to create a space where both Austin and Glenda can maneuver safely and where Lea can be close enough to her mom to support her. While there are additional costs incurred to ensure a fully accessible ADU (the modifications will add about $50,000 to the typical $250,000 cost), it will be a life-changing blessing for the Martinez family.
As Lea faces this huge need as a single-income family, she knows she does not have the ability to make this happen on her own. It is time for long-term, sustainable solutions for her family, and Lea is determined to provide what she knows Glenda and Austin need. But she will need help.
There have been so many times in the past five years that Lea and her family could have just given up completely. Yet somehow their faith in God, their love for one another, and their indomitable spirit has only grown. Lea seems superhuman in her ability to wake up every day and love and care for her family, in spite of tragedy, overwhelming obstacles and lack of resources. But no human is meant to face the world without support from their community and those that love them. Everyone reaches a point where you simply cannot go on without help from others. Lea needs her community to help her, so that she can continue to take care of Glenda, Austin, Carmella, Jonathan, Gabriel, and all the family and friends that turn to her in their own times of need. Please consider donating to support the Martinez family and make the accessible ADU a reality for them.
Fundraising team: Martinez Family Community (2)
Jordan Dennen
Organizer
Palo Alto, CA
Leonora Martinez
Beneficiary
Ariana Yee
Team member