'How can so much happen to one family?' Elgin nurses with special-needs kids now deal with stroke

A suburban nurse who has two children with special needs is fighting to recover from a stroke, and friends and relatives are asking themselves, “How can so much happen to one family?”

Thirty-seven-year old Ray Florido of Elgin, a cardiac care unit nurse at Advocate Sherman Hospital, is in the intensive care unit at a hospital in Las Vegas, and possibly faces a rare-disease diagnosis. He suffered a stroke Sunday night during dinner with his wife Kelly, also a nurse.

The Floridos had just arrived in Las Vegas to celebrate their upcoming eighth wedding anniversary with a much-needed vacation, their first without their two young children. Their son Brandon, 6, has autism and their daughter Layla, 9, has juvenile myositis, a rare and incurable autoimmune disease.

Now, the couple is unsure what the future holds, or even when they'll be able to return to Illinois.

“It's horrifying,” said Ray Florido's mother-in-law, Anita Richter of South Elgin. “It's just everything turned upside down, and it's been really hard.”

The lone bright spot has been the outpouring of support from friends and co-workers, Richter said. “What the people have been doing ... it's so amazing,” she said.

A GoFundMe organized by nurse Lauren Matchett, a co-worker of Kelly Florido at Edward Hospital in Naperville, raised more than $13,000 as of Thursday afternoon. The money will go toward the family's expenses, likely to include specialized medical transport for Ray Florido, Matchett said.

“I am overwhelmed with the love and support this has generated in just over two days,” she said. “I wanted to bring people's attention to how amazing this family is, and how hard and unfair their cards have been dealt with them thus far.”

Ray Florido's sister, Roxy Florido of Los Angeles, said the family is very grateful for the immediate support during such a harrowing time. “It's amazing,” she said.

Kelly Florido declined to speak publicly.

Roxy Florido said her brother had been improving mentally and physically — able to eat by himself and take a few steps with assistance — but developed a second brain clot Wednesday. Doctors are working to determine if he suffers from Moyamoya disease, a rare, progressive cerebrovascular disorder that would require specialized intervention, she said.

“We are literally sitting here, knowing there is a clot in his brain,” she said, speaking from her brother's hospital bedside in Las Vegas. “We are waiting and hoping that no more clots form.”

The Floridos have three children, including Ashley, 21, Kelly's daughter who plans to fly to Las Vegas on Saturday, relatives said. The two younger ones are being cared for by Kelly's sister. Layla is prone to infections, so she can't visit her father right now.

“We thought about getting the kids out here, but it's too risky,” Roxy Florido said.

The Floridos are both compassionate and dedicated nurses, their co-workers said. They are active with the Cure JM Foundation, dedicated to curing Layla's disease, and never hesitate to be there for friends, no matter how busy they are, they said.

“Ray is the most caring nurse, friend, dad and husband,” said Brittany Gran, a nurse at Amita Health St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin, who was trained by him at Sherman Hospital. “He's always a leader and he's there for everybody. Everybody always looks up to him.”

Kelly Florido “is one of the most selfless people I know,” a strong advocate for patients who doesn't hesitate to stay late to ensure their needs are met, Matchett said.

Roxy Florido said her brother encouraged her to follow her music dreams even if that meant he was left alone in Illinois to take care of their aging parents.

“He's a jolly guy. He's always smiling,” she said. “Everyone that's reached out to us has told us how much he has shaped their lives, and made people believe in themselves.”