- April 22, 2024
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"The joy of the Lord is your strength."
These are the words Charlotte Barber, a medically retired veteran, has lived by through times of trial. Charlotte, mother of three boys and grandmother of two, has seen more than her fair share of curveballs in life, but her family said she chooses to smile through it all.
Facing many health issues and an upcoming road to recovery following a scheduled open-heart surgery Aug. 10, Charlotte was desperate to come up with funds necessary for medical supplies to help get her by — namely, a bed elevated at a 45-degree angle that will keep her head elevated above her heart to prevent swelling after. Cue her son, Keith, and the CrossFit community.
Health and fitness seem to run in the Barber family. Charlotte’s middle son, Keith, is a coach at Armor CrossFit in Ocoee, and Charlotte was always involved in the fitness arena. After she had her three boys and struggled with getting the weight off, she got into step aerobics and fell in love with it, eventually getting her own teaching certification for the class. She also got a license for personal training and certification for geriatrics, prenatal and mommy-and-me classes.
She went on to enter the U.S. Army at age 31 and served for 11 years. She did a tour overseas as she worked in nutrition care and preventive medicine, eventually earning the rank of staff sergeant. But while overseas, she fell off of a five-ton truck and ended up having a cervical spine fusion.
“I had two surgeries on my shoulder and a hip surgery, so by the time we got done with all of that, it was very difficult for me to wear full (gear), so I was medically discharged in 2013,” she said. “I wanted to be a lifer, and that was my whole vision from the beginning, so it was kind of heartbreaking.”
But the trials didn’t stop there. Eighteen months later, Charlotte was diagnosed with lupus and went from being very active to taking medications and managing her pain daily. In 2014, she was rushed to the hospital after suffering a mild heart attack, where she was diagnosed with a moderate mitral valve prolapse. This caused blood to incrementally flow backward into her lungs. Rather than getting better, the condition worsened, and surgery became her only option.
When Keith shared the link to his mother’s GoFundMe on his Facebook page, he never dreamed his CrossFit community would come together in such a large way. However, Armor CrossFit owner Jeremy Brassard saw the post and knew he wanted to help. The next day, he told Keith he wanted to host a benefit for his mom.
“He saw it and the next day he came in and was like, ‘Hey, I want to do a benefit for your mom,’ and I was like, ‘Awesome!’” Keith said. “My mom is amazing. Compared to all the accomplishments she’s had and everything she’s fighting for now health wise, I think she’s pretty amazing. She used to be a fitness professional, too. To go from that to having to walk with a cane, psychologically that hits you really hard.”
The benefit took place Saturday, Aug. 6, with CrossFit members from all over Central Florida coming out to show their support for Keith and Charlotte. The athletes showed up in full force, participating in a hefty workout and donating to Charlotte’s cause. Many of them even donated to the GoFundMe account prior to the benefit.
“When this benefit came up I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, who cares about little old me that much?’” Charlotte said. “But that goes to show the impact Keith has on the people around him, for them to volunteer — because he didn’t ask for this. All he did was send the GoFundMe link out, and they did the rest for him. This part of my journey has really shown me that sometimes family is not blood, and they come through.”
At press time, a total of $1,805 of $3,000 was raised through GoFundMe, and $957 was raised during the benefit. With tears in her eyes Saturday, Charlotte couldn’t help but express her gratitude for her son’s CrossFit community and her hope she finds in God.
“I appreciate them, and they’re extraordinary,” she said of the CrossFit community. “They’re Godsends, they’re angels just walking around. I have joy in spite of it all. I don’t know what His plan is, but the bottom line is I’m strong in His joy. You can make it through anything and you don’t have to do it alone.”
To donate to Charlotte’s fund for medical supplies, including the bed that will help prevent swelling in her heart post-surgery, visit her GoFundMe at gofundme.com/2ediar8.
Contact Danielle Hendrix at [email protected].
