Dylan McDonnell

Hello, my name is Randi McDonnell and I am so proud to tell you about my nine year old son, Dylan.

Dylan is an honor roll student, has the most amazing imagination, loves his family, loves animals, is sweet, loving, and just one of the best people you could ever know. He is also very brave. At the age of two, Dylan was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a genetic disorder that progressively causes loss of muscle. Ever since that day, our family life has changed. After all that Dylan has been through, he still has a beautiful, bright smile on his face. He loves to play with his brother Shane, loves playing on his iPad, loves to cook, loves to play with our cats and dogs and loves art.

All my husband Mike and I want to do is ensure Dylan has the best possible life he can have and one that he deserves. We want him to feel independent, to feel secure, to feel safe and to be able to do anything he likes to do. Mike and I are doing anything and everything we can to provide Dylan with what he needs. We have medical insurance, but insurance does not cover everything. He will need specialized medical equipment as well as personnel in the home to help manage his care. Unfortunately, this is a lifelong disease. There will be many expenses in the future, and some have already started accumulating. At the moment, our biggest need is a vehicle that can safely get him in and out to doctors appointments, school and physical therapy. Of course, these handicapped transport vehicles are very expensive.

We wish no child ever had to go through this. I would hate to have someone go through what we are seeing Dylan suffer, constantly falling, to not be able to ride a bike or run and play. He has to sit and watch his little brother run and play and doesn’t really understand why. We wish no parent ever had to watch their child fight through any disease and worry about insurance coverage, and the expenses needed to give their child the best quality of life. So I ask, from the bottom of my heart, please help our family raise the funds Dylan so desperately needs. ANY amount will help. God bless Dylan and God bless you for listening and helping. I would also like to ask if you could please share this, so we can get this out as far and wide as possible. Thank you so much.

Family and friends of Dylan McDonnell are raising money for the nonprofit Help Hope Live to fund uninsured medical expenses associated with Catastrophic Illness.

Dylan has chosen to fundraise for Help Hope Live in part because Help Hope Live assures fiscal accountability of funds raised and tax deductibility for contributors. Contributors can be sure donations will be used to pay or reimburse medical and related expenses. To make a tax-deductible donation to this fundraising campaign, click on the Give button.