Lisa Pickering's Recovery Fund

MY FRIEND LISA…

We all have friends that we’ve known forever. Even though you only live a few miles away and you haven’t seen each other in a year because, well…life just got in the way, you would still drop everything if they called and needed help.

Today I am reaching out for that friend, Lisa Pickering. We first met and bonded over a mutual love of Diamonds and Rust by Joan Baez when it played on the juke box. That was over 20 years ago and we’ve been great friends ever since.

Last week, Lisa texted me and asked if I was free on Friday. Yes, I immediately answered! I thought she had a rare day off and wanted to go for lunch and catch up. She responded by asking if I could accompany her to an oncologist appointment at Maine Medical Center in Portland Maine. She wanted a 2nd set of ears. I didn’t ask much more and didn’t hesitate to say yes, just asked what time.

THE BOTTOM LINE…

I want to respect Lisa’s privacy but she needs our help right now.

The bottom line is that Lisa has been having some medical problems for some time (years). About a month ago, she went in for a biopsy for some mutations that were found in her pancreas. It took a month to get the results and when they came back, she was asked to come in to discuss her options. The mutations did not show cancer, yet, but The “Whipple” Procedure (pancreatoduodenectomy) was recommended for treatment. This operation encompasses several surgical procedures in the same operation. I’m not going to get into the specifics of the entire medical procedure here but this is a very complex operation that can take 4-12 hours and it involves critical organs that all need to work together. I've provided a link below if you'd like to know more.

It was only as we were sitting in the exam room with multiple health care professionals and questions being asked and answered, that it began to feel “real”. The Whipple Procedure seemed to be the only answer. When everyone stepped out of the room for a few moments Lisa turned and looked at me and said, “I can’t do this right away, I’ll need to save up some money.” I asked her if 6 months sounded realistic for her to do that and she said “Yes, so maybe I can do it in September (2023)”

When the Doctor came back into the room, he made it very clear that the surgery needed to happen as soon as possible, “This can’t wait, Lisa, we need to schedule this right away.”

Even though there was no cancer found at the time of the biopsy, he explained that he wouldn’t be surprised if he found some cancer when he does the surgery. A date of March 13, 2023 was agreed upon.

SO HERE WE ARE…

I knew the moment we pulled out of the parking garage that day last week that I needed to do something to help her. The stress of the surgery that could save her life is anxiety enough, the financial aspect should not have to be a worry for her.

Lisa is a genuinely warm and caring person, always thoughtful of others. Everyone in her close-knit community knows that when you walk into a room with her, be prepared to stop a lot, as someone is always calling her over to say Hello. She knows everyone’s names and everyone knows her. She is the first to offer help to those in need. As a matter of fact, as we were leaving her appointment, she was more concerned about having to leave her elderly client who depends on her, while she is out having the surgery.

Lisa is a Private Caregiver (and a workaholic) which also means that she can’t collect disability, etc. when she is out of work. Lisa doesn’t have private insurance which also means that she will probably incur some out of pocket expenses. She owns her own little bungalow home which she inherited from her parents just a few years ago when they passed. She has taxes, insurance, utilities, food, upkeep and all the other many expenses we all have, not to mention cleaning up the downed trees from the past few Nor’Easters we’ve had here in Southern Maine. Like many of us, she basically lives paycheck to paycheck.

After the surgery, she will be in the hospital for one to two weeks (some of it in ICU) and the full recovery time will take up to 8 weeks. Being out of work for this amount of time will create financial hardship.

Thank you in advance, thank you for reading Lisa’s story.

Even a $2 donation will accumulate fast.

Please share this and ask your friends to share.

As Lisa would say “Peace!”

(And by the way…we did get to see Joan Baez live in Portland Maine and when she sang Diamonds and Rust, we bawled our eyes out.)

https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/whipple-procedure/about/pac-20385054#:~:text=A%20Whipple%20procedure%20%E2%80%94%20also%20known,pancreas%2C%20intestine%20and%20bile%20duct.