On September 17, 2011, The Miracle for Michael Fundraiser was held at Resurrection Lutheran Church in Redondo Beach, CA and was an enormous success. The outpouring of donations, monetary gifts and volunteers who donated their time and talents in so many ways from working booths, cooking food, handling credit card transactions, driving shuttles, and performing music; as well as all the behind the scenes work that went into setting and cleaning up was overwhelming to say the least. It truly was a blessing and we cannot thank everyone enough for their kindness and generosity. We far exceeded our hopes of what we would raised that day, making over $26,000.00 during the fundraiser and an additional $1,800.00 from ticket sales at the Comedy Magic Club in Hermosa Beach on October 26, 2011.
Now we would like to share what we have been able to do to help Michael move forward in his recovery since that wonderful day.
First and foremost, we have been able to stay in our home by putting a portion of the monies toward our monthly living expenses; including Michael’s co-payments for his medications and therapies. In terms of rehabilitation for Michael, our greatest success was achieving our goal of getting the Gait Harness System. This device allows Michael to work on improving his standing, gait, and balance in an effort to learn how to walk again. The belt around Michael’s waist, which attaches to the device and the straps around his legs, secures him in a way that other devices do not; giving him a safe environment in which to learn how to walk. It also allows caregivers to safely work with Michael on other activities such as practicing proper posture, balance exercises, and throwing and catching a ball. Practicing how to walk and doing physical exercise is Michael’s favorite kind of therapy so needless to say, he loves the gait harness system.
The money that we raised also allowed us to pursue some non-conventional treatments and therapies, which are not covered by our insurance.