Family Feature: Meet Leroy

Leroy was an ordinary teenage boy living in Northeast Philadelphia with his mom, Lisa, and his brother, Daniel. Leroy and Daniel were adopted by Lisa when Leroy was just two years old and by all accounts, they were a typical happy and healthy family.

Everything changed for them on July 17, 2019 when Leroy was rushed to St. Christopher’s hospital with a pulmonary hemorrhage and diagnosed with sudden on-set systemic lupus. He required intubation with a ventilator to breathe and was in the ICU in critical condition for over five weeks. Due to his life-threatening condition, Lisa, a single mother, left her demanding job as a case manager to remain at his bedside during this terrifying time.

Once out of the woods, Leroy spent almost eight more weeks undergoing intensive inpatient rehab to re-learn almost everything: walking, talking, and eating.  He was finally discharged home on October 22, 2019. While he still has many follow up medical appointments, physical therapy sessions, and requires medication infusions every four weeks, he and his family are thrilled he is home and delighted with his progress.

However, the challenges of those weeks without pay put a significant financial strain on the family, and Lisa struggled to pay the bills. She is back to work, but the impact of losing three months of income was devastating for the family.  Then their social worker told then about Fred’s Footsteps.

Because of Eagles defensive lineman Malik Jackson’s generous pledge to us, Fred’s Footsteps was able to provide the Beck family with three months of rent payments, car payments, and car insurance payments.

Lisa writes: “Although Leroy has made it out of the hospital, he continues to fight his battle with lupus, making it a challenge for us all each and every day. We are doing our best to make life as close to normal again as we possibly can. Your assistance will help us tremendously in the following months to come.”

On December 19, 2019, Leroy and his family were invited to the NovaCare Center for a tour and the chance to tell their story to the Eagles and NBC10.  And the fun continued when they were also invited to the Eagles playoff game on January 5, 2020 and got to meet Malik in person on the sidelines.