For 55-year-old Helene Ferester, life with cerebral palsy involves juggling medical care, wheelchair access, independence, mobility needs, and home health care needs. Helene has faced a greater medical and financial burden since the passing of her mother in 2023. That’s why her community has partnered with the national nonprofit Help Hope Live to fundraise for what Helene needs to thrive.
Helene spent 20 years as a front-end manager for her family’s pharmacy and general store, Yonkers Prescriptions, until the store closed. Part of the Ardsley community since she was six years old, Helene remains as connected as she can while navigating unique challenges. She worships with Young Israel of Scarsdale and Greenburg Hebrew Center and regularly shops with Evergreen Kosher.
Helene relies on an electric wheelchair and an accessible van to get around and at-home caregiving support to stay safe and healthy. Her beloved mother, Doris, passed away in 2023, which left a gap in Helene’s life where Doris used to assist with caregiving, mobility, home care, and trips within the community.
She needs more help at home than insurance will cover. Out-of-pocket caregiving costs are just one entry on a long list of key expenses that Helene must cover, including electronic lifts to help with transfers out of her wheelchair, unexpected hospitalizations, and repairs for her accessible bathroom.
Knowing she could not meet all these out-of-pocket burdens on her own, Helene started fundraising with the nonprofit Help Hope Live in 2023. Her community has raised over $4,500 to assist with medical costs over the past two years.
To help with Helene’s ongoing needs, make a donation at: https://helphopelive.org/campaign/21432/
In addition to lifting the financial burden, donations help fuel a unique mission in Helene’s life: to respect her mother’s loving legacy. “Receiving help and continuing to be as independent as I can be is a way to honor my mother,” Helene explained. “She spent many years working to ensure that I had as many opportunities and as high a quality of life as possible, and I know she would have liked to see that continue.”
Unlike a GoFundMe campaign, donations to Help Hope Live are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law, and all funds raised will be administered by the nonprofit to cover verified medical and related expenses. Help Hope Live verifies medical and financial need for every patient.
Help Hope Live is a national nonprofit that specializes in engaging communities in secure, tax-deductible fundraising campaigns for people who need a transplant or are affected by a catastrophic injury or illness. Since 1983, campaigns organized by Help Hope Live have raised over $188 million to pay patient expenses.
