Please Help Officer Andrew Johnson

Andrew Johnson (AJ, as most of his friends and family know him) is a 34 year old man who has been battling childhood type I diabetes since he was 17 years old, and his battle hasn't just been with the disease it's been with the insurance and the pharmaceutical rates for his type of  daily medical expenses. He is on an insulin pump and his prescribed insulin and the parts required for his pump run approximately $1,200.00 a month. This makes it impossible for a man working on an officers salary with student loans, a house payment, a car payment, utilities, and life in general to be able to afford those astronomical costs. What's worse is that in a situation like this the only thing he could afford to do was to try cutting back and stretching out the most expensive cost in his life, his medical needs, which has brought him to the state he's now in. So this brings us to where we are now as AJ's kidneys are now in a state of shut down and he's currently in the ICU in Hamot Hospital.

Diabetes is such an ugly disease and a never-ending cycle of balancing physical, medical, and mental health which can negatively affect each other. Most people don't truly understand what being a diabetic means and how quickly things can go south on a minute by minute basis which is exactly why he needs his pump and insulin. Unless you have a close friend or family member who is or has battled this monster you truly never understand the gravity of the situation. This is why it's always best to always keep yourself informed when you know someone who is struggling with something that you yourself cannot personally relate to, and especially if it's someone you love. Stress alone can affect your levels and your bodies ability to cope with its unhinged internal balancing act. The stress alone from dealing with the overwhelming bills of his past hospitalizations actually kept him from wanting to be hospitalized this time had his family not interceded and his brother actually drove him to the hospital. He felt like his health wasn't worth the price that it came with as he's already forking over 400.00 a month in past medical expenses on top of his other overwhelming expenses. You see this is an endless cycle for AJ and one that's burying him in a mental and financial hole that is actually killing him. It's so sad that we live in a world where the life saving medications people need to survive is more than a hard working person can afford. I feel at times this world is broken and this right here is a living breathing example. 

Everyone that knows AJ also knows his incredible family and the special bond they share. There aren't many families like this one left, and it's something above all else they know they are lucky to have. It's all for one and one for all in the Johnson home. When anyone needs anything they rally together in force and divide and conquer whether it's their annual woodcutting weekend for their parents where all the boys show up and gets in their designated positions or planning weddings where even the most delicate of pieces is hand crafted with extreme love. AJ's family will do anything they can to help anyone they know needs a pick me up or are in some kind of need themselves. Unfortunately, now their family is in need that can't be met, and that my friends is the only reason they have allowed a GoFundMe to be made. Andrew doesn't even know yet that this has been created as he is currently hospitalized and the family didn't want to upset him as he is such an independent person himself, but truly it's the only thing they can do right now as writing this I am sure his bills will well exceed the amount the family has chosen to agree to. 

Being a cop is what makes AJ shine as a person because it's his passion like his brothers and so many in this field. Being a police officer is a dangerous job, but this current danger doesn't even come from being in the field it comes from within himself. He chose this career to help others and to truly serve and protect but now is our chance to help honor one of the many boys in blue and help him get back on the streets again serving and protecting. Andrew's girlfriend, Brittney, and his parents, Tim & Dawn, and their other boys (two of which are also police officers) Justin, Jacob, and Mick, want to thank anyone and everyone who has the ability to give. God Bless you all!