John Taylor Gatto needs our help.

On July 29, 2011 John had a stroke which left him hospitalized for months and mostly paralyzed on his left side and bedridden ever since.  His brain is working well, he believes he has much more to accomplish and contribute, and he is slowly gaining his strength.  Over the last several months we have raised enough money to help John and Janet in big and demonstrative ways... let's keep it up and get him back on his feet and ready to share his next round of intelligent discourse with us! We love you John!
 

** John has no income aside from a rapidly diminishing small pension and the contributions folks like us are making to support him until he is recovered.  
**  John is extraordinarily deserving of all the help we can offer him: those of us who admire, respect and love him for the energy, brain power and commitment he has
 shown to children, homeschoolers and unschoolers around the world.  Let's become the community we dream of and support John at this critical time of his life, shall we?
 

Ways you can help John:

As of December 20, 2012,  
John is humbly asking for help with:


1. Financial assistance, for daily meals, medical needs not covered by medicare, computer supplies and all of the other ongoing expenses of daily life.

2.  Drivers.  Do you live in the New York City area?  Do you have access to a vehicle that can transport John and Janet and John's wheelchair?  Do you have time to help?  John would LOVE assistance to get to doctor's appointments.  He has a dream of being able to visit his country property 250 miles away too and it would be a godsend for him to find someone willing to take him there for a visit.  (It may require you spending the night at your own expense at a local hotel or B & B!)  If you can assist with driving, please email.

3.  Medical advocacy.  Do you live in the NYC area?  Are you knowledgable and passionate and capable of maneuvering the bureaucracy that is the medical system?  Are you willing to make phone calls and do some legwork in resourcing options for John?  If so, he could really use your help.  Email if you think you can do this.

John says, "It's hard for an old fellow who lived an independent life to become a beggar, but I'd like to render more service to my fellow human beings in the time I have left."

with love and gratitude to all,
john (taylor gatto)

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John's current condition: 

Effective July, 2015, John is no longer able to accept PayPal contributions, nor personal checks. He humbly seeks our financial support for daily care, meals and a myriad of special needs that are changing and arising daily. If you are able to help, make your check payable to John's Power of Attorney Ronald B. Hitchon, writing "for John Gatto" in check note line.

Send your check to: 
Ronald B. Hitchon
c/o John T. Gatto
235 W. 76th Street, Apt. 14E
New York, NY 10023

July, 2015:

John's wife, Janet, suffered a stroke a few months ago, was hospitalized, has returned home and is receiving physical therapy and care. John is able to move around every day, get to his desk, write. He's responding boldly to questions via his blog and working on the content for a new publication coming out soon.


on September 26, 2014, John sent this to me:

Life is too lovable not to love, God's artistry in making a planet and its creatures never fails to astonish me. My physical strength does seem a little better, day by day, but my brain is still too sludge-filled and dizzy to allow the best concentration on brain work; in the past I did my best work, literally, while I was laughing, or at the very least grinning broadly at the human comedy, but, alas, that merriment has fled at the constant bone/joint pain left at the legacy of the strokes, which no allowable pain-killer seems to touch. 


Yet in faith I remain quietly optimistic, as I was taught as a little boy to be, and if ever I fully recover, as a result of this experience, I shall fully appreciate what a superb blessing the simple gift of walking really is, along with the wealth that comes with the simple state of being, given equally to us all, whatever our social or economic status.


Prior to the strokes, like most people, I always wanted MORE, unable to clearly appreciate I already had everything I needed for happiness, but it took that sudden shock of frailty to fully bring the lesson home.

Hope all is well with you in the warm parts of the earth as we here, await the ice and snow. Be well my friend, and above all ,healthy; do stay away from sugar, Satan's deceptive sweetness. 


With love and hugs, John 

p.s.  With luck, a reprint edition of Underground History will be out by Xmas, and my children's book, Snider,the C.I.A. Spider.



on August 21, John sent an update on his health:


"Some of my strength has returned; I know because originally i could only sit up for a half hour at a time, but now with help from Tonya,my home health aide made possible by the generosity of all of you wonderful people, I can sit up for four hours, 8 times longer.  The joint pain lingers, but I am optimistic that it, too will diminish.  My gratitude to the unseen well-wishers is boundless.  Living in New York City tends to make a fellow cynical, but the help we have received so far has restored my faith that human beings at heart are fundamentally decent, so god bless those who have reached out to this old fellow from pittsburgh.  Love and hugs to all.  You are my inspiration, enjoy the beauty, it's everywhere! " John






on February 1, John sent an email of gratitude:


"Thank you and everyone for my new smile! Next Wednesday for the first time in a year I'll have teeth and be able to smile and chew again! The hospitals lost or broke two earlier sets of dentures, so it's been a long interval between peanuts.
     
Truly, what people have done for Janet and me has been spectacular! The donor funds have gone for an aide to help me get out of bed and go to the bathroom, sanity-preserving services, for medicines, for printer ribbons,writing supplies and utility bills. 


I'm ashamed to say that I am one of the millions who ignored the parental wisom to put something aside for a rainy day, a jerk who devoted too much of his life to sugar and white flour/rice-- which are sugar in disguise. The strokes were almost certainly the result of abnormal blood sugar levels producing diabetes. This weird experience of weakness after a lifetime of perfect health has brought some wisdom too late, but, as mom used to say, better late than never. Anyway, genuine gratitude to all of you for taking away some of the stress at this horrible time. Their big-hearted generosity reminds me of the way Americans were during WWII when I was growing up. What a huge difference it has made for an old Pittsburgh boy and his wife--teeth, medicine, supplies, bills. 


When I get back on my feet, thanks largely to you all, I won't forget to follow this example with somebody else as needy as we are now, so the samaritan momentum will resonate beyond this moment ... God bless you all!  


Love to everyone from a grateful old fellow who thanks his invisible allies and prays for them every night. We would do our kids a big favor by preparing them for the worst and letting them see how quickly the good things we take for granted like walking, using two hands, speaking clearly, and chewing can be taken away in one second by surprise; I had heard that preached, of course, but the words lacked sufficient meaning to influence my behavior. Now I appreciate that time and vigorous health are the real wealth. We need to put our heads together and figure out effective ways to teach that."



                  with love and a smile, John