What brings Kelly Green and Lauren Shevcheck together is a simple: a shared belief in help, in hope and in life.
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"Help Hope Live is a national nonprofit geared to help families who are facing a medical crisis not have to face a financial crisis," said Green, the executive director of the organization.
Green originally came to the office 14 years ago when her family needed help affording her mom's kidney transplant.
"Why can't my mom live? Why does my mom have a price tag on her life?" Green says she questioned at the time.
The money she raised at the nonprofit helped save her mom's life, however, it also taught her something else.
"The need for fundraising never stops," she said.
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Green is now the one providing help to people like Shevcheck, who was paralyzed in a diving accident eight years ago.
"I went from being a very bright and vibrant 19-year-old, with her entire life ahead of her, to someone who was now learning how to feed themselves again," said Shevchek.
The nearly half a million Shevcheck has raised for medical expenses through Help Hope Live has helped her buy necessary tools for survival, like her wheelchair.
When the pandemic stopped the world, Help Hope Live powered through, expanding its services and fundraisers to people with long-term health issues because of COVID-19.
Last year alone, the nonprofit was able to raise nearly $5 million for patients' medical expenses.
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"People that have survived COVID-19 have also survived with extensive bills," said Green.
Green knows the need for this work will never stop, which is why she came back to the nonprofit after her mother passed away. Out of that grief, came her passion to help.
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