Leanna and Jim Papadopoulos met Danielle Linfoot and her husband, Shawn Evans, through their mutual love of vintage vehicles and the car club scene.
Now Leanna is hoping those connections among car buffs can help spread the word and raise money for the family as Danielle battles a life-altering health issues.
The Papadopoulos family was among the many auto buffs who brought their vehicles to the popular Jellybean Autocrafters Canada D’Eh Car Show July 1 on the Langley Bypass.
But they wanted to do more than show off their Chevelle.
They brought 50/50 tickets and information about an upcoming fundraiser for Danielle.
Around Christmas, she had the flu, and when it worsened, was taken to hospital. A strep infection was threatening her life.
The cause of the infection is unknown. Danielle had eczema on her leg, and was suffering from the flu. She complained that her leg was hurting. Doctors believe the illness lowered her immune system, and when she scratched her leg, a streptococcus infection could have entered her blood stream. It attacked her organs, and within hours she was hospitalized, then put on life support for 10 days.
She survived, but the tissue of her hands and feet was blackened and dead. In April, her hands and feet had to be amputated.
The family will need hundreds of thousands in home renovations to allow Danielle to gain some independence. As well the prosthetics she will need will run in the neighbourhood of about $300,000. Leanna noted that just annual maintenance on the prosthetics could be up to $8,000 per limb.
The community has rallied around, and Leanna is helping organize a fundraiser for July 22 in Maple Ridge. The cost is $25 per ticket and the event runs 3 to 7 p.m.
It’s a car show fundraiser in which people can choose their theme – Forties Gangster or ’50s Diner.
Organizers are looking for donations for the event and for the family. People can find out more by contacting Leanna Papadopoulos at 778-668-1616.
– With files from the Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows News.
