Meet our adopted Families!
Bell Family
Jackson, 7 and the oldest of four, has a rare disease where almost all foods attack his body. It's called Eosinophoilic Esophagitis, Eosinophoilic Entercolitis, and Eosinopholic Gastrointeritis. He also has sensory processing disorder, asthma, and hand tremors. He is 90% g tube feed. Everything he eats must be organic. He also takes a medication that isn't covered by insurance.
Madison is 4. She has Celiac disease and cant have any milk, eggs, nuts, gluten or wheat and soy. She drinks coconut milk and loves her gluten free Vans waffles and her Ians chicken nuggets.
Gracie, 3, has Sensory processing disorder and also cant have any dairy, eggs, or nuts, or soy. She complains of stomach pain but hasn't been diagnosed yet.
Mackenzie, 19 months, possibly has the same thing as Jackson. She is on elemental formula called Neo cate infant.
All of the children HAVE to eat organic. They are a 1 income family, with Mr. Bell being in the military. Mrs. Bell can't work due to the constant medical needs with Jackson. There are always doctors appointments, therapies and specialists to see. Gas alone can cost them $400 a month. A grocery trip for organic food and supplements can easily run over $400. Mr and Mrs Bell have gone without meals to make sure their children are provided for.
From Mrs. Bell,
"I have called companies and begged for coupons and wrote our story, I have even called Whole foods and Sprouts to see if I can get some kind of discount to help our family but im always told no. Ians chicken nuggets did tell me that if I mail in 15 upc codes that they will mail me out 1 free box coupon, so I continue to collect my upc codes to help."
Here is the link to our Jackson's page. Check out the "About" page for a summary of their journey.
https://www.facebook.com/JacksonBellsStruggleWithEosinophilicEosphagitis
Peeples Family
Michael and Rachael are proud parents to Cody, 16, Michelle 12, and Haley 5. Rachael is a "stay at home" mom while Michael, a Georgia Bulldogs/Steeler fan, works full time.
Cody likes video games and loves to play baseball. His sweet sister, Michelle, loves to dance Both are huge helpers to mom and dad as they make their way through their journey with Haley.
Haley has right temporal lobe seizures with a tumor at same location, nine inches deep near the neck. Her low muscle tone is presumed to be due to her chromosome duplication of chromosome 16. She's also been diagnosed with apraxia (speech disorder), dyspraxia (low gross motor skills), and sensory processing and integration disorder. Her family recently had good news about the tumor not needing radiation. However, she will still need brain surgery for her the severity of her epilepsy.
Needless to say, Haley has a ton of appointments to attend. Money is tight, but Rachael (mom) is amazing at budgeting. This family of 5 gets by on $60 a week for groceries. Haley has finally been approved to get on Medicaid, but now it's a "catch up" game. Added to the stress of Haley's upcoming surgery, the dryer and dishwasher have stopped working, and they have to replace the carpet in their house with laminate flooring per the doctor due to allergens.
Regardless of their struggles, this Georgia family has put their faith in God. It would be LJHH's honor to help carry some of the weight on their shoulders.