Not even two years old yet, Jemmah John's life, has been nothing close to normal.
“So Jemmah first started having issues when she was about 2 weeks old. We found out that she has a bunch of genetic abnormalities that they think everything is stemming from, the biggest issue we have is with her stomach and it’s just been kind of like a snowball effect since then,” said Kilah John, Jemmah’s Mom.
Jemmah and her parents just spent the last 40 days in the hospital for a bad internal infection, and just got back home last night.
“At first it was hard because we didn’t know what was wrong with her, and now that we know what’s wrong with her it’s really bittersweet. It’s been really surreal. She’s our third, and our first two came out perfectly normal and healthy, yeah, it’s been a very very wild ride,” John said.
So when Brian Humphrey got word of their family story, he knew he had to do something.
“Someone associated with our company knew Jemma’s family…and my heart hurt a little bit for them.”
Humphrey is the owner of the cleaning company, Cleaning for a Cause. And every couple of months he goes on a hunt for a family or charity to give 20 percent of his profits in addition to asking for donations.
“The majority of the charities we give back to, that get a lot of press- we do a lot of that stuff anonymously, but sometimes we try to get a little bit more information about those for these local, smaller charities that need more assistance immediately,” said Humphrey.
When I asked why he does it, he said it’s all about setting a good example for his son.
“One of his favorite movies is Evan Almighty, and he’s like how you change the world, with an Arc, one act of random kindness at a time.”
And Jemmah’s family is next on his list.
“I feel like I’m doing what should be done, and I think if we were going through this, someone else would be doing the exact same thing, ” said Humphrey.
It’s that mentality that Jenna's parents tell me is an answered prayer.
“It’s extremely touching. They care so much about her and her story and our family as a whole, to get that support from people I mean we’re so grateful. We could never put into words how much it means to us,” John said.
Starting on May 1, Cleaning for a Cause will have a link on their website where you can donate to the family.
Right now, there is no particular cure for Jenna's condition, but her family said they're going to keep fighting and raising awareness about her condition until a solution is found.
