Help Greg heal

Hi, my name is Leslie and I am fund raising for Greg & Michel Riley

Dear family and friends,

Three short months ago we got the devastating news that our very dear friend Greg Riley had a massive stroke. He was 63 years young.

Greg and his wife Michele’s story are one of hard work, resourcefulness & working together.

• For many years Greg & Michele co-owned and managed a grocery store they both worked in that served the community of Chemainus, British Columbia on Vancouver Island.

• Seven years ago, a huge change in the market area occurred resulting in the loss of their business. They had to close their store down, lay off their staff who were like family, and say good-bye to their loyal customers and neighbors.

• They weren’t ready to retire, so after much research they found a place that could benefit from their experience, work ethic and many skills it takes to run a business.

• They chose to take positions working in remote and challenging areas of northern Canada, managing the grocery stores and supplies for each town they served.

• They sold their house and downsized their possessions to store in their absence.

• They worked in Baffin Island: Pond Inlet, Cape Dorset, Qikiqtarjuaq and the North coast of Labrador: Rigolet, & Nain.

• After 5 years of serving these communities they decided that Newfoundland would be an affordable and beautiful place to retire.

They flew back to Chemainus, shipped the rest of their possessions across the country to Heart’s Delight Newfoundland, picked up their car and began driving across Canada stopping along the way to visit their family and friends in BC and Alberta.

Tragedy struck on the day after Greg and his wife Michele arrived in their new home to begin their adventure as retirees. The stroke paralyzed Greg on one side of his body and left him unable to talk. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital in Carbonear where he spent the next 3 weeks.

They didn’t know anyone in Newfoundland, their friends and family were on the other side of Canada. Greg was in the hospital, and Michele was suddenly his sole caregiver with a house to take care of that wasn’t wheelchair compatible. And it was nowhere near the hospital Greg would need to be transferred to in the bigger city of St. John’s where he would receive the care and physio he needed.

Then, through God’s grace they experienced the unapparelled kindness that Newfoundlander’s are famous for from the few people they’d met through the purchase of their house.

• The people they bought their house from gave them a full refund

• The realtor gave them back her entire commission

• The woman who owned the house invited Michele to stay there as long as she needed while they made the arrangements to transfer Greg to St. John’s.

• Michele found a condo in St. John’s to move into, so she could be near the hospital and Greg.

All of this took place within six weeks of their arrival.

That was their first miracle

They settled into the routine of Greg going to therapy to regain the use of his body and speech. On Sept. 23rd Greg was transferred to the Miller Centre in St. John’s, and Michele made the 3 hour round trip from Heart’s Delight each day to be with Greg until she found a nearby condo.

Greg’s dedication is unflagging in his determination to work at healing with Michele managing life while remaining at his side. Their commitment and resourcefulness during this time reflects the life they’ve shared and worked for together all these years.

On Oct 27th Greg was released from the Miller Centre and Michelle has been taking him back 3 times a week for therapy. While Greg worked at healing, Michele learned all she could about strokes and researched any treatments or procedures that might fortify his current therapy.

Once again, through God’s grace she discovered a treatment they have been using in the US called Perispinal Etanercept for post-stroke. This treatment has proven to be quite successful in reversing the debilitating effects from having a stroke. Once injected into the spine, it assists blood to flow to the injured parts of the brain, so it can gain the ability to communicate the way it did prior to the stroke.

Michele got in touch with the medical facility and Doctor that does this procedure to learn if Greg would be a good candidate for it. Initially she was told that they were fully booked through February, so it looked like they might not have a chance to get in until March or even April.

This treatment has a better chance of success the sooner one receives it after a stroke.

She did all the necessary paperwork and sent it off in hopes Greg would be accepted . . . and waited.

Last week they got the call that Greg has been accepted, and if he can get there, his first appointment is booked for January 5, 2022 and his second one a week later!

That was their second miracle.

They need your financial support to make this happen.

Every donation small or big will make a huge difference. Please join us in donating to help Greg and Michele access the treatment he needs.

Greg and Michele will have to fly from St. John’s Newfoundland to Fort Lauderdale Florida. From there they will need to rent a car to drive to Boca Raton where Greg will receive both treatments. They will be there a total of 9 days before flying back home.

Can you please help facilitate their third miracle to give Greg the chance to receive this treatment, to regain his mobility and ability to communicate?

The expense of the trip plus the cost of the treatment will cost them about $30,000.00, depending on the exchange rate between Canadian and US dollars.

We would all be eternally grateful for your support.

Thank you!