Raise Funds to Help Jason & Candace

Hi, my name is Brooke I am running a fundraiser for my best friend, Candace and her husband, Jason Jacobson. These people mean the world to me and if you know me or them, you know how hard this is and how much it means to them to put a GoFundMe together.

Candace and Jason's story started in 2015 - they met, fell in love, and started planning a life together... But life didn't go as they planned or expected. In only five months of building a relationship together, Jason was in a horrific car accident that lead to him being paralyzed from the chest down (a T6 paraplegic).

Since the accident, Jason has suffered a series of setbacks during his healing process. During his first hospital stay after the accident, he was not moved as he should have been and developed pressure wounds. The wounds led to him developing chronic osteomyelitis, a severe bone infection. Osteomyelitis treatment is limited and the only way to get the infection resolved is to remove the infected bone. Between constant lengthy hospital stays and home wound care from Candace and nurses, the wounds never fully healed and recently have worsened beyond repair. Unfortunately, Jason would rarely be approved for home care, but occasionally it happened)

In 2018 after trying to make a life in Montana, Candace and Jason realized two things: wheelchairs are not made for commuting in snow, and also that Jason would not receive the type of care he needed to survive in Montana. They knew he needed specialized treatment options and soon. The couple made the decision to move their family, including Jason's two young sons, to Flint, TX to receive the care he needed.

Over the last eight years, Jason has been in and out of the hospital from pressure wounds caused by chronic osteomyelitis. Sadly he has only been considered "healthy" for approximately eight months in the last eight years. His last (and current) hospitalization in March of 2023 saw him transferred to Baylor Scott and White Hospital in Temple, Texas. Temple is 3 hours away from where Candace lives in Flint, TX.

While at Baylor, Jason's symptoms worsened and he was given two options as a treatment path after finding out the chronic osteomyelitis spread throughout his pelvic bone. The first option would be to go through a radical procedure called, hemicorporectomy where surgeons would remove his entire lower body from the pelvis down. This is a lengthy, very complicated, and extreme surgery. The second option, if he isn’t a candidate for the hemicorporectomy surgery, would unfortunately be to have Jason put on hospice. If, and only if, hospice is the only option, the couple will be moving back to Montana to be closer to family and friends to spend time with the people Jason loves.

Currently, Jason is not healthy enough to receive the hemicorporectomy surgery, but the surgeons have given him 4-6 weeks to see if he can raise his stats enough to survive the surgery. That plan involves giving him PT to build up his strength for the surgery and rehab/recovery after.

Here is where they need your help. Candace is currently residing three hours away and still needs to work full-time to supplement the cost of living and pay bills. Her mental health is suffering from being apart from him during this difficult time for them. Both of them know every day is more precious than the last in this case and not being close to one another is incredibly hard.

Candace told me the most important thing she wanted me to include in this write-up was, "I need to be with my best friend and soulmate. It’s been proven that Jason heals faster when I am there to encourage him. Also, most importantly, time may be limited and I want to be able to spend as much time with him as I can. I am asking for help so I can find temporary housing in Temple for myself and our two amazing dogs, Gus and Oscar. I would also use the donations for travel for myself and for our two kids, Tyson (14) and Asher (13) to come to visit their dad before surgery if that is the path we take."

The boys were moved to Montana at the end of 2022 because Jason was hospitalized again for an extended amount of time. Candace and Jason did not want to put them through missing out on school activities, and sports and having to spend their days off at the hospital. They are living with their aunt and uncle in Montana and doing very well, but getting them to Texas to see Jason is important.

This GoFund Me is to help with the cost of travel, supplementing Candace's income, and the expected moving expenses. She needs to be in Temple to be able to help Jason to get healthy and strong enough for the surgery. Most importantly he is not ready to give up the fight to live and she wants to spend as much time with him as possible together. Candace cannot continue to work full-time, travel six hours round trip on her days off, and pay the added expense to board their dogs. This is not sustainable for as often as she needs to be in Temple and it's taking a toll on her health.

Thank you for reading this, Candace and I have been friends for almost 20 years and all of this breaks my heart over and over again for her and Jason. She is the most giving and supportive human I know. Asking for help in ANY way is so very hard on her. Will you join me in helping this wonderful couple?