TLDR Summary:



My name is Amy and I am Stephen Perry’s wife. During a visit to Arizona, Steve suffered a massive stroke and has been hospitalized since. Steve has been making progress, but lately he has been feeling increasingly more homesick. Because of his condition, Steve requires medical transport back home, which can be arranged but is very costly. I am hoping that with some help, I will be able to move Steve back home to be near family to aid in his recovery.



Detailed Version:



My name is Amy and I am Stephen Perry's wife. During a visit with family in Arizona, my husband suffered a massive stroke at the young age of 35. He was intubated and kept in the ICU under heavy sedation after he developed additional complications. He was unable to breathe on his own and was connected to a ventilator to maintain his breathing. He had a tracheostomy performed and then was moved to an acute care facility where they continued treating him. Steve eventually was weaned off the ventilator and began breathing on his own. He thereafter was transferred to another facility where he is currently located.



During this time, there was an outpouring of support from friends and family, especially from those in the Rocket League community who have gone above and beyond in showing their support for Steve. We are so grateful for the initial support provided by generous donors who helped with the medical costs associated with Steve’s care and allowed me to visit Steve as frequently as possible. We are also grateful for the thoughts and prayers during Steve’s attempted recovery.



Steve has made some progress. He is slowly regaining some movement in his right side, and he is improving the strength of his swallow, though he is still unable to eat or drink at this time. Although he is unable to speak, he is able to communicate by spelling things out on a keyboard or a letter board. I am hoping that with some practice, he will regain his keyboard skills as typing still takes quite a bit of effort for him.



At Steve’s current facility, he was making progress during his physical therapy and speech therapy, though his progress seems to have slowed in recent months. His depression has been getting worse. Steve wants to be by me and he wants to come home so badly. I asked him what he wanted for Christmas and he spelled out that he wanted to go home. I think he feels rather hopeless.



The distance not only affects Steve, but his family and I have also been affected. It is quite costly each time I fly out to visit him. The cost ranges from $1,500 to $2,000 per trip depending on the amount of time I stay with him. His mother has also been flying out to see him, and she incurs her own costs as well. In addition to monetary effects, the distance emotionally affects us as well. It is difficult to see Steve so upset about wanting to go home and feeling like there is nothing we can do to help. It is also extremely difficult for me to manage his care from across the country while I am not visiting because it can be difficult to get ahold of the necessary personnel by phone or email.



I feel that a move from Arizona to back home is what is best for Steve. I feel his mood would improve should he be closer to home. He is already stuck in a hospital while he recovers, and I don’t want to have the added stress of being across the country from home and family as well. He needs to be focusing on his rehab and getting better and not thinking about how he wants to go home. The rehab therapists at his current facility also have noticed the decrease in Steve’s progress and have noted that it seems to improve during the times I am visiting.



Because of Steve’s current condition, he requires medical transport in order to come back home. I have contacted several places and the cost of travel to bring Steve back home via air ambulance is roughly $25,000. This cost covers the use of a pilot and medical staff to monitor Steve in addition to the use of the medical equipment during the flight and the use of the plane itself, including the cost of the jet fuel required for the trip. Steve would need to take an ambulance to and from the airport, and this cost is included in the above figure. Unfortunately, the insurance company will not cover the cost of the trip, which puts the burden of the cost to bring him back home solely on me.



Due to insurance reasons, I am unable to move Steve until the beginning of 2017 and I would like to have him transferred as soon as I can arrange everything. This move will require quite a bit of communication and paperwork to get everything set up, but I am hoping I can arrange it by mid to late January.



I realize that $25,000 is a lot of money to raise, and people have already been generous enough to donate to help with the medical costs accrued for his illness. I am hoping that I am able to convey how Steve feels and the necessity of moving him back home so he can recover in the best environment possible. Any compassionate donations will be very much appreciated to offset some of the cost of sending him home. To Steve, bringing him home would be the best possible gift he could receive, and it would put the biggest smile on his face. Steve deserves to be happy, and I think moving him closer to home would make him extremely happy and improve his mood.



Lastly, I wanted to thank everyone for their support and any donations made to help make Steve’s wish come true. Our family greatly appreciates everything people have done to help. The support has been so amazing and we couldn’t ask for better people rooting for Steve’s recovery.



I also wanted to include a special shout-out to the Rocket League community. Your support for Shalthis has been so touching and nothing short of amazing. He is lucky to have so much support from the community and we are so grateful.



If you would like to make a donation in some other manner other than through this site (PayPal, check, etc.) please send me an email through the site or to [email redacted].



Again, thank you so much for your support and generosity.



Amy

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