2022 FAMILIES
The 2022 CPBC Families
This year the Chicago Polar Bear Club is honored to support three amazing families.
Read on for their inspiring stories below, including details on how your support for the CPBC will each of help these families look forward to a bright future in 2022 and beyond.
(1) The Parra Family
4 young children and their newborn sister
… who all lost their mother to COVID-19
A grandmother who opened her heart (& home) to take care of them all
Meet Selina Parra, from Countryside, Illinois, who in 2020 was the proud grandmother of 4 grandchildren, and was excited for her 5th: her daughter was pregnant, with a baby girl on the way. Unfortunately, 2020 had other plans for Selina and her family -- Selina’s daughter, Kristin, passed away from COVID-19 complications in June 2020.
She was only 32 years old, and had just giving birth to her youngest daughter 2 months prior.
It’s hard to fathom losing a mother, let alone one who was so young, had just given birth, and had 4 young children at home.
As a result, Selina, along with her partner Samuel, are now the guardians of Selina’s 5 grandchildren – Angelina, Julissa, Angel, Neto, and Janessa – who range in age from 1½ to 14 years old. Despite the shocking tragedy and the challenges of caring for 5 young children, including an infant, Selina and Samuel were there to provide love and support to the children.
The question wasn’t if they’d make it work, but how -- fitting 7 people under one roof is no easy task. The family knew they had to find more space, and do so within their means, so they moved into a 3-bedroom mobile home in the Chicago suburbs. While they’ve made it work as a temporary home, it’s still a tight fit for a family of 7. As the kids continue to grow, Selina is working on plans to relocate the family once more. They could use more space, and she’d love to find a place with a yard where the kids can play.
In addition to exploring a change in housing, Selina is also in the process of formally adopting her grandchildren, to ensure she can provide them with all the care and support they need.
Despite the tragic loss of her daughter, Selina remains positive. The newly large family has come with challenges, like increased costs for rent, groceries, clothing costs, etc, but in the face of these tough circumstances, when asked about raising her grandchildren, Selina said “I wouldn’t have things any other way”.
The Chicago Polar Bear Club was struck by Selina’s dedication to her family and is eager to help ensure the children have a stable and loving home to grow up in. With your support, we can help Selina and Samuel with housing expenses, absorb the costs of a much larger family, and support them through the adoption process, as Selina and Samuel officially welcome the 5 children into their home.
(2) The Anderson Family
2 beautiful twin girls
5 years in and out of the hospital for 1 of them
1 family with hope for a brighter future
Meet Chuck and April Anderson, who in March 2011 welcomed two twin daughters into their lives - Graciela and Guilianna. Unfortunately, the gift of twin girls came with complications: The twins were born 8 weeks premature with extremely low birth weights (Graciela at only 3lbs 13oz and Guilianna only weighing 1lb 13oz). As a result of their premature birth, Guilianna’s health was seriously impacted -- she developed Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC). NEC is a condition where the intestine becomes infected and can die, which combined with her low birth weight, led to Guilianna spending the first 10 months of her life in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) for comprehensive medical care.
The complications from her NEC continued even after those long 10 months. Guilianna then had surgery to remove part of her small intestine and eventually developed a rare disease called Short Bowel Syndrome (SBS, or simply ‘Short Gut Syndrome’) – where a person is unable to absorb enough nutrients from their food, because they simply don’t have enough small intestine to do so.
This has led to several more surgeries for Guilianna over the years, including removal of her gallbladder at age 5, and after 2 years on the waitlist, an intestine transplant in April 2021. The surgeries went well, but there continue to be ups and downs, and many doctor’s visits to monitor her health. All in all, at 10 years old, Guilianna has spent nearly half of her life - 5 years - in the hospital due to her conditions.
Thankfully, Guilianna has received excellent medical attention, but despite this, she still requires 24/7 dedicated care. Her parents, Chuck and April, have shouldered most of this responsibility, and fortunately have found in-home care to help Guilianna 4 days a week with all of her injections, feedings, IVs, diapers, checking blood pressure and temperature, and more. However, this care is only there until the parents return from work. At that point, Chuck and April immediately start their shared second job: caring for Guilianna full-time. This essentially means there is never a break - they both are either working or caring for Guilianna 24/7.
With Guilianna’s care as a top priority, this has made it hard for Chuck (as a Machine Operator) and April (as a Veterinary Technician) to maintain full-time employment. Chuck was unable to work following Guilianna’s transplant surgery due to her care needs, but recently started a new job; and April is currently only able to work ~15 hours / week to balance caring for Guilianna.
In addition to the time and energy required for Guilianna’s care, there are also many medical bills to pay. Though most of the medical expenses are covered by insurance, the family is struggling to make ends meet more broadly -- from day-to-day expenses (utility bills, groceries, clothes, school supplies etc) to the additional costs of Guilianna’s care (in-home care, diapers, medical supplies, travel costs to & from downtown Chicago for doctor’s appointments) -- the bills add up very quickly.
The Chicago Polar Bear Club was blown away by the Anderson's resilience in the face of all these challenges. Chuck, April, and Graciela have continued to be amazing supports for Guilianna and remain optimistic about their future. With your support, we can help the Anderson family look forward to a brighter future by helping reduce their debts, cover expenses, and ease the path forward, as Guilianna continues to recover from her recent transplant surgery.
(3) The MOHAMMED Family
The tough decision to move to the US for a better life
A heartbreaking autism diagnosis
1 plunge to help them get back on their feet
Meet Sami and Ruquia Mohammed, from Chicago, Illinois, who moved to the United States in 2014 looking for a better life. While times were difficult, they made it, and were so excited when their first child, their son, Raed, was born in 2017. As Raed grew and started to develop, Sami and Ruquia noticed a few concerning signs, such as late developing speech and minimal responses to his surroundings. When Raed was 18 months old, they had him tested and confirmed their fears: he was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). While it was heart-breaking, Ruquia and Sami were relieved to understand the causes behind Raed’s development issues, and were eager to learn how to best care for Raed. They want nothing more than to provide him with every opportunity for a healthy, and happy life.
To help Raed, the family had him evaluated through the Individualized Education Program (IEP) and he was referred to undergo Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) – an analysis focused on behavior, the environment, and how best to proceed with learning. This therapy can help increase language and communication skills, improve attention, focus, and social skills, and decrease problem behaviors. ABA therapy is flexible and customized for each child, but it is very intensive - typically requiring 25 to 40 hours of therapy per week.
Therapies like this can make a big difference, and work best when started early. Therefore, the clock is ticking for almost 4-year old Raed to get started as soon as possible to aid in his development.
Though effective, this type of therapy also comes with a high price tag -- an additional $700/month. The family is committed to finding a way to get Raed the therapy he needs, but this has been very difficult as Sami is currently unemployed. Fortunately, he has a plan: he has a degree in Computer Science and is working on an additional skill-building program to help secure a new full time job in this field. Until the program is complete, he is doing everything he can to provide income for his family -- including working side jobs to help make ends meet. Completing the program will take time though, and at this point, the family has used up most of their savings just to pay for rent, utilities, and Raed’s much needed therapy.
On a positive note for the Mohammed’s, Sami and Ruquia (and Raed) recently welcomed a new addition to their family in early 2021 -- their daughter, Anaam was born. They are overjoyed to now be a loving family of 4, but a growing family also comes with additional mental and financial stress on top of their existing challenges.
The Chicago Polar Bear Club was touched and impressed by Sami and Ruquia’s dedication to their family, including meeting Raed’s special needs. With your support, we can help the Mohammed family get back on their feet and provide the financial support they need to help cover the costs of rent, utilities, and Raed’s ABA therapy, as well as help for the recent arrival of Raed’s baby sister, Anaam. Together, we can help the Mohammed family look forward to a bright future together.