Community comes to aid of East Hartford teacher struck with autoimmune disease

NEW HARTFORD, Conn. — An East Hartford physical education teacher is making asking the public for help.

46-year-old David Bocchichio was diagnosed with a rare auto-immune disease called mixed connective tissue disorder this past September.

It’s a disease that makes the body attack itself affecting muscles, joints and the nervous system.

“Now that I have a diagnosis, I’m realizing I’ve been experiencing symptoms for 5-6 years but things started getting bad for me in October, I’d been rock climbing a bunch over the summer, did a lot of work around the summer and my elbows were hurting so bad just toweling my hair off was painful,: said Bocchichio.

According to Bocchichio, it’s left him in serious pain and now it’s putting a strain on his finances.

It’s affected his love for rock climbing, mountain biking and other outdoor activities.

Being an active family man, he says the struggles are starting to pile especially when the COVID-pandemic made it hard to work for both him and his wife

“Looking at our bills it was really kind of a low point we realized man we are in big trouble our kids are about to graduate high school,” said Bocchichio.

That’s where Heather McClure and other stepped in to help a friend in need.

McClure set up a GoFundMe which has at this point raised over 26-thousand dollars, but with medical bills that is still not enough.

“This really just changed his entire way of life and so there is a lot that’s going to go into it besides the financial part, but at least this is a start,” said Heather McClure.

The money raised is set to go to medical treatments, and to help raise his children.

Bocchichio says he would rather give than receive, noting that he gave his left kidney back in 2001 to one of his students’ parents, but now it’s Bocchichio who needs a helping hand.

“We’re going to get through this okay and if there is one thing I learned in my whole career as a teacher is the power of love,” said Bocchichio.

If you’d like to donate to give David and his family a helping hand

Here is the link for the GoFundMe.