By Julie L Hutchison | President, Co-Founder and Chelsea's Mother
Thanks to you and others just like you, we have had the privilege of providing 420 life-saving movement monitors to those in need across the United States. You might wonder why we provid these, believing insurance should cover them. You are correct, insurance SHOULD cover them, but sadly they don't. They are not FDA approved due to the size of these companies that produce the monitors and the red tape and expense with doing so. This fact keeps them from being on the radars of many medical professionals as well. Way too many families learn of these monitors after it is too late - much like our family. We receive messages weekly from family who have these monitors in place who believe because they were notified of a night-time seizure, they were able to intervene and their loved ones survived. Our family truly believe that if we had known to monitor Chelsea, and had the opportunity to attend to her, our outcome might be different. Most SUDEP (Sudden Unexpected Deaths in Epilepsy) losses are unwitnessed and unattended. Can you imagine the lives that are saved daily by these amazing monitoring devices?
Enjoy see the faces of just a few of our most recent monitor recipients.
"Your SAMi-Alert Monitor literally saved my daughter's life. I was sound asleep. My daughter had a very bad tonic clonic seizure. We no longer have her seizure medication due to insurance, so she is having 100's of seizures a day, staying in bed most of the time and sleeping. When her alarm when off and woke me up, she was purple by the time I got upstairs to her. She had aspirated and was not breathing." Claude F. - Tennessee
"Thank you and everyone that donates their time and efforts. We have a piece of mind when our daughter goes places now and it is thanks to you guys." Emily L. - Utah
"Thank you so much for the SmartWatch. My freedom is extremely important to me and for those that don't know my story, it'll keep my son and I together instead of apart. You guys have truly been a blessing in my life. This epileptic momma can be a mom to her kid with this by my side!" Samantha C. - Florida
In addition to our Global Giving projects, we raise funds year around through several events. Last month we held our 8th Annual Spring Gala Casino Royale Gala that proved to be a record breaker for us. We host Chelsea's Bingo in Aurora, Colorado on Sunday and Thursday evenings each week. It is a big job, but has proven to be a great fundraising tool for us. Epilepsy Awareness Day at Elitch Gardens take place in Denver on June 3. Also happening that day is the Purple Duck Chase. Anyone anywhere can sponsor ducks for $5 each or 5 for $20. Join in the fun!
Our 8th Annual STOMP Out Epilepsy and SUDEP Awareness Walks take place this September. For more information and locations nearby, click on the link.
Every year, through Chelsea's Wish, a project within The Chelsea Hutchison Foundation, we sponsor families who deal with the impact of seizures and epilepsy to participate in Epilepsy Awareness Expo and Day at Disneyland. To date, we've provided 27 families with all-expense paid trips to particpate. This year our goal is to send 10 families and we are currently accepting nominations. To contribute to this wonderful event that brings an isolated community together, please click here. For more information on qualifications and how to nominate your family, please go Chelsea's Wish
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