We Can't Help Every One, So We Are...
Helping With Lyme, One At A Time!
November 15, 2014
Normally we don't put this type of request out in public, but as we all know so many are struggling to overcome Lyme and tick borne diseases and many have little to no help. With that in mind and with your assistance we are launching the Helping With Lyme, One Person At A Time project. Why? No one should be sick, untreated and going hungry too, especially when there is a child in the family that is being negatively affected.
Since I have no clue what I am doing or how to do it (coming from my heart and not my head), I am sharing a few lines from a volunteer Lyme advocate (Kandice Dickover) who is working closely with a young mother in her area, and who, upon my request, provided an accurate list of what is needed in the event we can all pitch in to assist her and her child.
She is a single mom who last year started suffering from Lyme (and co-infections) and has been greatly affected. She had to go on temp disability for as long as she could, but then insurance stopped paying. And then her Lyme doc and other docs agreed she needed the picc line but insurance denied it twice (upon appeal).
She is stuck working only 20 hours per week because of disability. She has a controlling ex-husband who has been using her Lyme illness to try to take her son away from her. She has now had to move into a smaller apartment from 2 bedroom to one bedroom and has had her cable, internet, and land line phone shut off, and right now is barely able to feed herself and her son or pay for her medications.
She is now overdue on rent and maybe on the verge of losing her 1 bedroom apartment. She got the approval letter from assistance office, never received any food stamps as of yet (since the 10/18 when she applied), so revisited office this week. They said they will put in for the card again (maybe another two weeks!) Her car is breaking down, the engine light is on and also mechanic told her she needs $200 fix for something with her wheels.
She really doesn't want to lose her job, which is why she keeps trying for partial disability rather than total. She is an excellent mother by the way. The only way she is surviving this is through her faith. Her family doesn't understand and refuses to help her or even recognize that she has been really sick and thinks it's all in her head.
If there is a way you can help this mother and son get moving in the right direction, here is what her most pressing needs are, in no specific order.
1. Gift card donations for the stores she uses for food and medications would be very much appreciated! (Food Stores- Walmart & Safeway. Medications- CVS Pharmacy)
2. If you prefer, personal checks can be made out to 'Kandice Dickover' and be sent to the address below.
3. If Pay Pal is easier for you, please click the link below. Your donation will go directly to Kandice Dickover to be used for this family's needs.
Any extra supplements you may have to share can be sent to the address below. If you'd care to order supplements online and ship them directly to Kandice, a link is provided with the price and pill count included. I've tried to find the best prices in advance to make it easier and more economical for all. Please do NOT send any prescription drugs. That is a nice thought, but a big no-no!
Prescriptions
Rocephin
Biaxin 500 mg
Ceftin 500mg
Tindamax 500mg
B-12 shots 1ml intramuscular/weekly
Cymbalta 20mg
Nuvigil 150 mg daily
Levothyroxine 250 mcg/daily- (Walmart- $4.00. CVS $13.00)
Supplements
Perque Digesta Guard (Probiotic)- $69.99 for 150 ct. plus free shipping at Amazon
Bio EFa 1030mg (Fish & Other Oils)- $18.95 for 60 tabs plus free shipping at Amazon
Ecological Formulas Resbid 500mg- $14.03 for 60 caps- plus free shipping at Amazon
Thorne Research Basic Nutrients III- $40.05 for 180 ct.
Integrative Therapuetic Super Milk Thistle- $40.50 for 120 caps
Pure Encapsulants B12 Folate- $15.10 for 60 caps plus free shipping at Amazon
Vitamin D3 100,000 mg/wk- $6.59 for 200 caps (2,000 IU) plus possible free shipping at Amazon
Prevagen apogequurion- $39.95 for 30 caps plus free shipping at Amazon
Vitron C Iron 65mg 1 daily- Walgreens 60 tabs for $9.99
Readisorb Glutathione- liquid
AGAIN, PLEASE DO NOT SEND RX DRUGS
THROUGH THE MAIL- ONLY SUPPLEMENTS!
I've listed all the meds needed ONLY to show you the situation is
both sincere and the need is great in this case!
Donations can be sent to:
Howard County Lyme Awareness Group
C/O Kandice Dickover
11110 Youngtree Ct.
Columbia, MD 21044
Kandice's Information
Email address- kandiceinspain@yahoo.com
Website Page on MarylandLyme.org - Howard County Lyme Awareness
Many blessings to you for anything you can do to help this family get stable and back on their feet. And thank you for always being there to educate and help others! A special thanks to Kandice for reaching out to help a Lyme patient in need. Kandice is amazing!
Please Remember- Alone we can't help everyone, but together we can help one person with Lyme at a time!
Lucy Barnes
PS- I was provided help when I was in a bad place trying to fight Lyme disease, as many others were on their rocky road to recovery. I want to thank those who reached out to me personally and kept me going. This effort, Helping With Lyme, One Person At A Time, is dedicated to those wonderful, generous, kind people. You know who you are! Thank you forever and ever!
PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR UPDATES!
Subpages (1): Updates for Mother & Son- Howard County
Helping With Lyme, One Person At A Time!
Update For Mother & Son
November 14, 2014- Sent out the 1st announcement for Helping With Lyme, One Person At A Time program.
November 14, 2014- Amazing news! Donations started coming in within 10 minutes of the emails going out. (BTW- The 1st donor for this project was also the first donor to sign up to help Dr. Charles Ray Jones and his children when he was having difficulty keeping his doors open, bless her heart. The office is still open due to your speedy and generous responses. Thank you!)
November 15, 2014- Green Santa! Kandice shared information with the mother to have her son signed up for the Green Santa program. Green Santa is for Lyme children (recipients) and those who care about them (donors) that I started on LymeNet- an online support group- years ago. It has since been kept alive by two different LymeNet members over the years- Julie is currently handling it. Donors send gifts (age/sex appropriate) to the parents to wrap and put under the holiday tree. To learn more about this year's Green Santa efforts click here.
Update from Kandice- She was crying because her apartment complex has set a court date for her rent plus court fees (extra $200) and a family member just told her that her illness was ..yup, you know it..."all in her head" and she was crushed. She just felt like everything was crashing down around her until I told her first about the Green Santa program...she wept...then, about the wonderful email and site created to help her and she cried for another 3-4 minutes straight she was so grateful!!! By the end of the conversation, she said she felt hope again and said that she was so grateful to all of us who are helping her and that she knows that God has sent us. I cried right along with her. [Needless to say, when I read this note I cried too!]
November 16, 2014- The caring and generosity of the Lyme Community can not be matched! To date $325.00 has been donated to help the mother and son. Additionally, a local business office's staff is providing a Thanksgiving dinner for the family. And- a generous donation to cover the costs associated with the insertion of a picc line was offered. And- personal assistance with the housing situation is currently in the works.
Update from Kandice- The mother is overwhelmed with gratitude and so thankful...she said that she feels that all of these people offering support are like angles sent from God. She told me just tonight that she will be able to get a good night's sleep knowing that there are others to help her.
November 17, 2014- Kandice is a chaperone for a week long environmental educational trip (includes overnights) with a group of young girls. Better her than me, although she did mention she'd probably need a hot tub and a chocolate IV upon returning home. ~smile~ Once she returns she will update us on the progress being made.
November 23, 2014- After meeting with the mother, a kind and generous donor paid the apartment rent for November and December. Amazingly wonderful news and an added sense of security for the mother and child. Thank you so much!
November 26, 2014- More great news! A generous donation (from a long-time Maryland Lyme advocate) of $1,000 arrived. It is to be used specifically for the insertion of a picc line. Arrangements for the procedure are in the works. Thank you for continuing to give to so many!
November 26, 2014- How wonderful you all are! Two donors, one from Catonsville, MD, sent many supplements based on the list provided, which were just in time and very much needed! The mother is so very grateful. Thank you both for your kind donations!
November 27, 2014- Family. They can be good, and when they are it is such a joy! Kandice's family continues to make donations to help the mother and child. Many thanks are sent their way!
November 30, 2014- An unexpected $100 donation came in from a Lyme patient during a support group meeting. He feels blessed and wanted to share to make someone else's life better. As was written to me in the progress report ... "How sweet is that?"
December 1, 2014- Oops! When it rains it pours. The mother's car, in need of repairs, finally broke down. It is in the shop. The mother is currently using a borrowed car, but it is not clear how long this arrangement will last.
December 2, 2014- As everyone prepares for the upcoming holidays we hope they will keep this family in their thoughts and prayers. If you'd like to donate to this cause, the information on what is needed is located here. (Click here) This PayPal button below will also allow you to donate right now if you'd care to.
One more thought- I have not listed the actual names of donors simply because I do not have, and did not ask, permission to do so. This is one of those things I did not prepare for in advance, so as we move forward with this project (or if you've already donated), if you wouldn't mind having your name on a list of donors, please let Kandice know. We'd be proud to share it here, and in the meantime, thanks to all of you who have given so generously.
One more thought, again- I know, I know... A quote from Edward Hale that I heard Frank Regan say while listening to a re-run of the TV show 'Blue Bloods' this morning.
"I am only one. But still, I am one.
I can not do everything, but still I can do something.
And because I can not do everything,
I will not refuse to do the something that I can do."
Happy Holidays!