Hello, my name is Tianna, and I am a 24yr old female living in Midlothian, VA. On September 17, 2018, at 1:36pm, my life changed forever, when I lost my fiancé, Josh over an iPhone. Josh and I were together for 3 years and we were practically attached at the hip. A week after our engagement I went from planning our wedding to planning his funeral. Josh posted a few items on an app called Let Go to make a few extra bucks to save for our wedding. The “potential buyer” was a 17-year-old, who had no actual intentions of buying the phone. Josh was lured down to a part of town that he wasn’t familiar with and shot him in the chest during broad daylight. Josh died on the floor of a convenience store.
When I lost Josh, I also lost a part of me. I fell into a deep depression and gave up on life. I ended losing everything from my fiancé to my house, my car, and my job. Life didn’t seem that it was worth living at that point. Once I lost my house, I moved into my parents’ tiny apartment and shortly after that my dad suffered his first stroke. I am a medical assistant at MCV hospital, so I was able to recognize the signs and got him to the hospital as quickly as possible. Luckily, he did not suffer any major deficits, and was released home after about a week. Not long after that, he had another stroke, but this time he was as lucky. He lost the function on the right side of his body, his vision, the ability to walk without assistance, he has an altered mental state and needs help with all his daily activities. My dad has a significant medical history, including diabetes, that put his in the high-risk category for COVID-19. I have been extremely cautious with his care since the pandemic first started, but in November of 2021, COVID hit our household and almost took the life of my dad. He was hospitalized for two months for COVID-19 induced pneumonia and acute respiratory failure.
So much has happened in last few years to myself and my family, that we fell on some really hard times. My dad’s medication alone cost $1,500 a month and his weekly specialist appointments are roughly $3,500. I have applied for disability on his behalf to cover these expenses, but unfortunately, it’s a painfully long process and we cannot afford care for him financially, but also can’t afford to lose him. My dad has been my best friend since day one and to see him in pain every day is too much to bear. I have been on FMLA at work to care for my dad and unfortunately, I have not been bringing home a livable paycheck. I am really all my dad has and I will do whatever it takes to keep him here, I would be absolutely devastated if I were to lose him because he wasn’t getting the care he needs, just because I had to work. It’s unfortunate that one must choose between a job to pay the bills and a family member. If anyone can bless our family, we would truly be grateful. Thank you.