Rally4Rally Help with baby Rally’s Medical Costs

Hi folks..... a year ago friends started this campaign for Rally and our family, to try and help us keep up on medical bills and expenses due to Rally's extended stay at Seattle Children's Hospital. As some of you may know, Jeremiah Rally was born 3 months premature and had several challenges early on. At the time, I went on unpaid leave and Rich was only sporadically working so that he could be at the hospital with Rally. I hated needing and asking for help, so I had my friend pull the campaign after the first couple of weeks and instead we used all our savings, sold stuff and maxed our credit cards. Three months later, once the baby came home, I went back to work, we started making head way with the bills. Over $10,000 even after insurance. Funds have been tight. Things were finally starting to get better. Then these last couple months, someone broke into my truck and stole our rent money...then Rich's jaw got infected... alternator on the truck went out, a week ago someone stole Rally's stroller out of the back of my truck... finally, on Monday I was unexpectedly served with papers, court orders saying my wages are going to garnished if I don't come up with $6700.00 by the 12th of April. If I don't pay the amount in full the jugement allows for them to garnish almost $600 a paycheck and they add an additional processing fee if $500 bringing the amount owed to $7200.00. As it turns out, the bill is for Rally's emergency airlift transport from Skagit Regional to Providence Everett NICU. My insurance is refusing to cover any portion of it saying Rally's coverage didn't start until March 1st even though he was born on February 29th. We think this is a system error since he was a leap year baby and I am appealing this, however the medical transport company just wants paid and turned it over to collections who got the judgement against me.

SO... We need help. Rich is working again, but with all the other stacked up medical bills, the garnishment would leave us unable to pay our rent and household bills, it's just too overwhelming and I am feeling hopeless. I am NOT on public assistance, I have NEVER received food stamps, housing vouchers or other state assistance. (Other than the borrowing from mom and dad sort of assistance). This is hard for me, but I need to keep a roof the kids' head. I feel a little like I'm drowning, and just praying to get through this without losing everything. I hate asking for money... That being said, anybody willing to help us, I can pay back with interest, I can work, barter/trade or sell whatever.... I can provide any kind of graphic design/marketing/branding services, computer repair, software tutorials, data entry, web work.... manual labor, babysitting, pet care, yard work...... anything, we just need to catch a break. Thanks everyone for taking the time to read this.

"Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny...."
~CS Lewis

Original Story:
Rally's Journey: On February 29th at exactly 29 weeks, 'Rally' was born to our friends Jennifer Mott and Richard Coleman.

During a prenatal visit, the doctor noted in the ultrasound that there was little fluid surrounding the baby and decided to prep me and the baby for transport to Providence in Everett. During this process the doctor discovered that the baby's cord was collapsing and within minutes I was in the OR undergoing an emergency C-section. They delivered a baby boy weighing 3lbs1oz. He was immediately stabilized and airlifted to Providence NICU in Everett in critical condition. I remained hospitalized at Skagit Regional due to hypertension. At Everett Rally was thriving. His Dad was amazing, driving back and forth between me and the baby and home, over 100 miles a day. Also, making sure my teenagers, Cody and Jordyn were taken care of as well as driving them to school and bringing them to see me at Skagit Regional and and their baby brother at Prov Everett.

I was released on March 4th and finally got to see baby Rally. He was doing great. On the 6th, we the baby for a few minutes to go get something to eat, we got a call from the nurse saying that Rally was sick and that he had to intubated again. Doctors suspected a blood infection and possibly NEC (necrotizing entercolitits). That night Rally went into complete system failure during a procedure to readjust his breathing tube. He went into cardiac arrest, and we thought we were going to lose him. Doctors immediately started chest compression's and breathing for him, he was injected him with 2 shots of epinephrine to his heart. The fantastic team of nurses, PA's and RT's were able to miraculously save Rally's life and got him somewhat stable and ready for transport to Seattle Children's Hospital where doctors and surgeons would be at hand if needed. He arrived at 3 am Monday. Doctors confirmed Rally had a blood infection and NEC. They continued him on several antibiotics and stopped his feeds. Poor baby wouldn't not start feeds again 3 weeks.

Rally spent 3 months in the NICU at Seattle Children's hospital. During that time he had 3 surgeries due to complications from the NEC. Rich and I continued to take turns driving over 120 miles a day to take care of the teens and still be with baby Rally.