Help Julie get new lungs

TL;DR: Julie has a rare lung disease, cystic fibrosis, and she needs a lifesaving lung transplant. But the hospital requires her family to fundraise upfront. We can help save Julie by raising $200,000 to cover medical bills, medicine, and living expenses for Mimi and Mrs. Kim to take care of Julie post-operation.

In spring of 2022, Julie’s lung stopped functioning and we almost lost her forever to cystic fibrosis. The doctors prepared her family for the worst. Yet God provided two miracles. Not only did Julie make it, her community showed an outpouring of generosity, which allowed Julie’s family to focus on her recovery while not worrying about how to pay for massive medical bills and putting food on the table.

But the fight isn’t over. Since the 2022 episode, Julie has been hospitalized seven times, each visit becoming longer and the pain more unbearable. The doctors agree that a double lung transplant is the only option to extend her life here with us. If she doesn’t get the transplant soon, her lungs will eventually shut down and we WILL lose Julie forever.

This is why I’m reaching out to you. For Julie to even get on the national transplant list, her family needs to show that they have raised sufficient funds to cover non-insured costs. If they don’t meet a certain fundraising threshold, the hospital can refuse the procedure, which would put Julie at extremely high risk of death. On top of that, she needs to get on the national list within the next few months, or there’s a high chance she misses this current window of opportunity.

With your help Julie can meet this deadline and win this final stretch of her journey. For context, the National Foundation for Transplants found that the average U.S. double lung transplant costs $1.3 million before insurance. We are asking for a fraction of that cost for out-of-pocket expenses, which will be immense. The hospital requires that Julie live 5 miles from the hospital after the procedure, causing them to pay double rent for at least several months. Their family will have zero income as Mimi and Mrs. Kim leave their jobs for as long as Julie takes to recover. Other expenses include specialized medical equipment and medicine that Julie will have to take for the rest of her life.

With every fiber in my body, I am asking the community to please help Julie get a new pair of lungs so her family, friends, and Draco can have her for longer… Julie is a fierce, strong, independent woman who has the biggest of hearts. We have the chance to save this amazing soul and lift the burden on her family. Let’s give her a new chance at life and the gift of sighing in relief, pain-free.