Help Jacob Frank With His Heart Transplant

Jacob Frank is an extraordinary fun-loving teenager who was born with a congenital heart defect and has been through more in his 14 years than most grown adults I know. With 3 open-heart surgeries since he was 2 days old, he has never let it hold him back from doing his very best in everything he does. He’s the most compassionate individual, strongest, most head-strong teenager I know and has been battling hard every day of his entire 14 years of life to try and keep up with his peers and get through the trials and tribulations that have been tossed in front of him on his journey of life!

 

 

2021 was especially difficult for Jacob as he was dealt a life changing event when he experienced an embolic stroke following a heart cath surgery. He had many scary and heart wrenching complications during his 6 week hospital stay ranging from pneumonia to fluid build up outside of his left lung which left him extremely weak upon returning home for further recovery. He has been working extremely hard with his PT, OT & speech therapy ever since returning home.

 

 

Upon getting back to a semi-recovered state several months later, we went back to Jacob’s cardiologist to address the original issue we had gone in for which was his leaky heart valve and overall enlarged heart which had gotten larger since his last echocardiogram. Jacob’s hypo-plastic left heart condition has left him with a single left ventricle and after much consideration about the risks of repair vs transplant, we consulted with a large team of doctors of all various types to come to the conclusion that Jacob is eligible for and would benefit greatly from a heart transplant.

 

 

Our family was initially devastated with the news of a recommended heart transplant, but Jacob and his family are all fighters and don't back down for a chance to do the hard and difficult things in life. After the initial shock wore off, we are all ready for the challenge. We have already been through a lot by living at Randall's Children's hospital for 6 weeks earlier this year, but we can and will accomplish anything we put our minds to!!! We are getting more and more prepared for the upcoming challenges immediately following the transplant as well how much our lives will change afterwards. We will also need to be near by the Seattle area especially post surgery, so planning for accommodations will be challenging to say the least when there is no scheduling for a heart transplant when exactly it will be taking place.

 

 

 

One of Jacob's biggest thrills in life is watching and playing basketball (when he has the energy). Jacob is the biggest Portland Trailblazers fan and although he was able to see the Blazers play in 2019, he would love the opportunity to meet his NBA Hero, Damian Lillard!!! Jacob loves to watch Dame's appearance on the latest Space Jam: A New Legacy movie playing Chronos. He loves Dame despite being a part of the goon squad. The Dame Dolla songs on the Space Jam: A New Legacy movie soundtrack are a favorite and on repeat when Jacob has control of the tunes. There isn't a thing Dame could do that would deter Jacob from being his biggest fan.

We are fundraising to help with all the extra and additional costs we will be incurring by traveling to Seattle Children's Hospital frequently pre and post-transplant that are not covered by insurance. He also needs additional PT, OT & speech therapy since insurance benefits have run out for this year. Any little bit helps and would be much appreciated!!!

 

 

Thanks,

Dave Frank (Jacob's father)