My Nephew/Godson Antonio

[JoesXJ]

Hello fellow Jeepers, I'm here to ask for help with a family situation.

Below is quoted from a flyer for a charity event in the Bay Area on November 2nd. Its for my nephew and Godson, Antonio, who will be receiving his 4th open heart by age 7 in late November/early December.

Please read below and if you can help out financially, even in the smallest amount, that would be great. I know times are tough, and if the only thing you can do is keep my little buddy in your prayers, then that's good enough for me.

Also, if your in the Peninsula and need a haircut, stop on by and get that mop cut off.

Thanks for any and all help,
- Joe Boatwright

This is our son Antonio (Tony) Avalos. He is the older brother to Aliana and baby brother Manny. He is 6 years old and about to celebrate his 7th birthday November 13th. He always has a smile from ear to ear, he has been through more than most of us could ever imagine. He is the comedian of our family and always makes us laugh.

Tony was born with Ebsteins Anomaly and Mitral Stenosis. After waiting as long as possible, enduring multiple tests and cardiac studies, it was determined that Tony would need Open Heart Surgery. He had his first open heart surgery at age 3. The surgeons repaired both tricuspid and mitral valves to the best of their ability. Tony had been doing well and took a turn for the worse. He had his second operation at age 4. At this time the surgeons once again repaired both valves. After 6 hours of surgery, we were finally able to see him, while we were there, Tony went into cardiac arrest and immediately rushed back into his 3rd surgery procedure. He received a prosthetic tricuspid valve and we nervously waited to see whether he would pull through. The Doctors induced a medicated coma and when Tony woke up he was having atrial flutter and ventricle tachycardia. After two weeks in ICU they implanted a defibrillator/pacemaker device. After a four week stay in the hospital, we were able to bring Tony home.

Currently, Tony is not doing as well as the doctors would like. Tony is scheduled to have his 4th open heart surgery next month. He will be getting a new tricuspid valve replacement, they will perform a Glenn Procedure, which reroutes the blood flow through your heart and lungs, he will also have an ablation to hopefully take care of the fluttering. It’s a complex surgery and all we can do is pray that everything will be okay. After all Tony has been through, he is just trying to live a normal life and be a carefree little boy.

Tony attends Fiesta Gardens International School in San Mateo and is enjoying 1st grade. He started playing soccer this year for AYSO as much as he can, mostly for the social skills and team building. Tony knows his limitations and always puts 100% effort into his activities. He loves playing card games, puzzles, dinosaurs, and action figures, like every other six year old. He is our inspiration and we look at life a different way because of him.

Since we are still trying to pay the bills for the 3rd surgery, and with a 4th surgery now imminent this has become a financial hardship for our family. Not only are we struggling to maintain the best care for our precious little boy, we are feeling the strain of not being able to afford to pay for his treatment.

We greatly appreciate Didi salon for their love and support by volunteering their services and donating the proceeds to Antonio.
We would also like to THANK the San Mateo Fire Fighters for their assistance with the Barbecue.

If you would like to donate please send your check to:

Antonio Avalos Trust Fund
C/O Bank of The West
195 East 4th Avenue
San Mateo, CA 94401
PH: 650.685.0191

Here's the original flyer saved from a PDF, the address is missing the city/state/zip, but is corrected in the quote above...

 

[Tenny]

Sorry to hear... maybe a paypal link so we can send it easier?

 

[Ben H]

Sorry to hear... maybe a paypal link so we can send it easier?

 

[JoesXJ]

They don't have one set up and I didn't want to post mine in case people would think I would pocket the money or some other nonsense. If someone wants to send money directly to me, I'll make sure to get into the account that weekend when I'm up there. If you'd like, I can post a copy of a receipt of deposit once I bring it to the bank.

My PayPal address is [email protected]

If someone wants to PayPal the money to me, please put in the comment section that its for the Antonio Avalos Trust Fund. I'll cover the 3% or whatever it is that PayPal takes out when I deposit the money.

I truly appreciate all the kindness.

- Joe

 

[hiimmred]

Hey Joe, sorry to hear. I'll try and go by and get a haircut, it's about that time anyway (the girl who usually cuts my hair won't be happy about it though). :shhh:

Ed

 

[JoesXJ]

Awesome! Call ahead if you can and make an appointment, ask for Julie, she's my cousin and the one who is organizing this whole thing.....as a bonus she's great at cutting hair, kids too!! Tell her your from (or just Jeep club), I sent her a link to this post here.

Take care,
- Joe

My bet is after getting a haircut from Julie @ Didi's you wont go back to your other place.

 

[XJ_ranger]

I'll keep him in my prayers and thoughts...

 

[REVROK]

I'll keep him in my prayers and thoughts...

Saying a prayer for him and for his family right now.

 

[Tenny]

They don't have one set up and I didn't want to post mine in case people would think I would pocket the money or some other nonsense. If someone wants to send money directly to me, I'll make sure to get into the account that weekend when I'm up there. If you'd like, I can post a copy of a receipt of deposit once I bring it to the bank.

My PayPal address is [email protected]

If someone wants to PayPal the money to me, please put in the comment section that its for the Antonio Avalos Trust Fund. I'll cover the 3% or whatever it is that PayPal takes out when I deposit the money.

I truly appreciate all the kindness.

- Joe

Alright I just sent a little bit of money (sorry poor college student here...). Hope this weekends event goes well!

-Drew

 

[hiimmred]

Awesome! Call ahead if you can and make an appointment, ask for Julie, she's my cousin and the one who is organizing this whole thing.....as a bonus she's great at cutting hair, kids too!! Tell her your from (or just Jeep club), I sent her a link to this post here.

Take care,
- Joe

My bet is after getting a haircut from Julie @ Didi's you wont go back to your other place.

I've got a 2pm slot with Julie (my wife's name too). I don't know about switching from my usual gal though, she's been cutting my hair for 25 years.