From April... I wanted to reach out to thank everyone & give a tiny update… 20 months after my life-saving surgery, I’m here… healing, learning, releasing, feeling, writing, and full of gratitude.  This time has been way more challenging than I’d hoped—including the sudden and unexpected loss of 3 dear ones, most recently my sweet kitty Aggie. Perhaps these animals with whom we sleep and snuggle daily are our closest connections with life. I still miss her constantly.  Some days are baffling. I’ve been dealing with lymphedema, hypocalcemia, and a looming experimental surgery. I’m still waiting for housing support and other financial safety nets—perhaps promised, but not guaranteed. Eating via G tube, making all my own food, and having rigorous exercise be a requirement rather than a luxury are also complex blessings of being an embodied, sentient soul. I’ll take it.  We are all so much more interconnected than we usually acknowledge and discuss. Thank you for holding my hands through these mysterious times… Here’s to trusting in regeneration and brighter days…  Blessings & thank you… April C. Heaslip, PhD  MYTHOLOGIST + EDUCATOR AprilHeaslip.com Nothing provokes speculation more than the sight of a woman enjoying herself. ~ Louisa May Alcott

As we approach the end of April's year-long stay at her recovery apartment, we want to extend a massive thank you to everyone who participated in helping her make it. It was a herculean effort, and we did it. Not only did April live through the ordeal of having her throat rebuilt and surviving cancer, she slowly but surely became increasingly strong, mobile, and capable. As of today, we have received 171 donations and have raised $18,102.00 from Gofundme, and $7000.00 from private donors. This has covered every rent payment for April's recovery apartment except the last, which will be on March 1st. We only have $2,395.00 left to raise. WHEW! THANK YOU! We also want to extend once again a gigantic *Thank You* to Dr. Feng (April's surgeon), Mass Ear, And Eye for your exceptional care and every single medical professional that has gotten her to the point she is at today. Included, we can not leave out the team at the Harvey apartments for giving April a temporary, but incredible, community while she needed to be within close proximity to her medical team. She is now working ten hours a week teaching virtually and will be moving into a new apartment that will be the next step in her healing journey, offering her autonomy and proximity to a familiar community of supportive friends on 4/1/23. Below is a rosy picture from April's recovery apartment on a cold winter night warmed by a hopeful future. Thank you once again. We could not have done this without you.

The first holiday since April’s life-saving surgery was spent with her family. There were many smiles and thanks given. She went to West Chester, PA, on the train (a gift from her sister and adopted mother) to relax into the joy of a Christmas at home. What a miracle, considering, at one point, leaving the hospital was a long wait ahead. April has come so far. As the new year was ushered in, April's fundraising team shared gratitude and awe that we had made it this far. We could not have done it without the help of so many people. As of 1/1/2023, we have had over 166 donations and have raised a total of $17,840 from April’s Go Fund Me account and another $5,000 from a private donor. Included are many gifts and other private contributions of needed things, from gift cards for Uber rides from her surgery recovery team to gift cards to local grocery stores. At this point, we need to raise $4,780.00 for the last two months of April's recovery apartment rent. WE ARE ALMOST THERE! She will then move on to the next stage of autonomous living. We are looking forward to this exciting step of her healing journey. It has been imperative for April to have access to the hospital when she needed it for routine appointments and intermittent stepping stones of emergency help. We are so very grateful to all of you for making this possible. Thank you, and we wish you all an incredible 2023!