New Lungs for Grant "Scrappman" Rappe
Donation protected
My name is Grant Rappe, thank you for taking the time to read my story.
I am a Husband, Dad, Son, Uncle, Brother, and most of all, I am a Papa.
I have end stage COPD, and I need a double lung transplant. I have been listed on the UNOS National Transplant Listing and await their call. I was very hesitant to start this page. I’m not real good at asking for help, I’ve always been much more comfortable giving it. That being said, here goes nuttn.
I believe that if you could put all the people in the world in just two categories, they would be:
1)The people you can count on.
2)The people that count on you.
It’s Pretty much simple as that, in my layman’s thinking anyway. I knew early on, which one I was. Wasn’t hard at all to figure out. I’ve practiced this my entire life to this very day. I am happy to be the Guy you can count on, it is who I have always been. With one exception, COPD, it has taken all that I was and stripped it away. It’s gone, never to return. This disease is so much more than not being able to breath. So much more.
“What I once was, I am no longer.”
“What I am now, is no longer me.”
I’m not going to bore you with all the statistics on COPD, but I can tell you that it changes every part of your life, and the lives of all the people around you. All you have to do is look into their eyes, and you will see it, it’s so heart breaking. Things as simple as taking a walk, just getting dressed in the morning, doing the dishes, making the bed, all the small things in life people do every day without even thinking about doing. These simple tasks take me so much effort, it’s like running a marathon everyday, knowing you have no chance of ever placing, let alone winning. But on a daily basis I must face them…All day, every day.
There is nothing you can do to cure COPD. That is a fact. The best you can do is slow down the progression of this disease as much as possible. The inevitable for anyone with COPD, is assisted end of life care and there is no changing that. The only daily relief is sleeping, and even then that changes as you move from the bed to sleeping upright in a chair.
But… there is one exception, lung transplant. I need a double lung transplant. It is the only way to extend and bring back some amount of quality of life back to myself, my family and the people around me. But most of all, it will give me time enough, maybe just time enough, that my Grandkids will remember who their Papa is, and where they came from. This means more to me than anything in the world.
That brings us back to why I am here, asking for help. The out of pocket cost, even with the insurance we are fortunate enough to have, for a double lung transplant would be devastating to my family and home with the financial burden it would cause. Something we have worked for all our whole adult life to attain, and would rather not give up. The post operative care is the most costly out of pocket cost. 3 months 24/7 care is required to even get listed for the transplant. This means Julie will have to take 3 months off from work. We will have to live across from the hospital during this first phase of rehab. Then 3 more months of traveling up to the University of Minnesota tri-weekly at first, then bi weekly, then weekly, monthly, trips up to the U of M for up to 6 months and for the rest of my life.
My Dad always said “Do just a lil bit better than good“ “and people will remember you for doing it” and “Everything you do in life WILL come back to you some day, so try to do more good, than bad.” Well I sure hope he was right, and I did enough good that it comes back to me now!!! My family and I need a helping hand.
Even if you can not donate, please just share this with everyone you can. This will help us get the word out. My family needs to, COUNT ON ME AGAIN, please help us make that possible.
There ya go, I gave it my best shot.
Thx for reading my story
Grant ( Scrappman ) Rappe
Well,,,, there is one more thing,, If I could get all the people I pissed off in the last 55 years to donate 10 bucks each,,,, quite possibly our goal would be reached in 1 day,,,,, 2 fold,,,, just say’n,,,,,hehee,,,,,Oh,,, ya,,,,
Thx again for taking the time to read my story.
I am a Husband, Dad, Son, Uncle, Brother, and most of all, I am a Papa.
I have end stage COPD, and I need a double lung transplant. I have been listed on the UNOS National Transplant Listing and await their call. I was very hesitant to start this page. I’m not real good at asking for help, I’ve always been much more comfortable giving it. That being said, here goes nuttn.
I believe that if you could put all the people in the world in just two categories, they would be:
1)The people you can count on.
2)The people that count on you.
It’s Pretty much simple as that, in my layman’s thinking anyway. I knew early on, which one I was. Wasn’t hard at all to figure out. I’ve practiced this my entire life to this very day. I am happy to be the Guy you can count on, it is who I have always been. With one exception, COPD, it has taken all that I was and stripped it away. It’s gone, never to return. This disease is so much more than not being able to breath. So much more.
“What I once was, I am no longer.”
“What I am now, is no longer me.”
I’m not going to bore you with all the statistics on COPD, but I can tell you that it changes every part of your life, and the lives of all the people around you. All you have to do is look into their eyes, and you will see it, it’s so heart breaking. Things as simple as taking a walk, just getting dressed in the morning, doing the dishes, making the bed, all the small things in life people do every day without even thinking about doing. These simple tasks take me so much effort, it’s like running a marathon everyday, knowing you have no chance of ever placing, let alone winning. But on a daily basis I must face them…All day, every day.
There is nothing you can do to cure COPD. That is a fact. The best you can do is slow down the progression of this disease as much as possible. The inevitable for anyone with COPD, is assisted end of life care and there is no changing that. The only daily relief is sleeping, and even then that changes as you move from the bed to sleeping upright in a chair.
But… there is one exception, lung transplant. I need a double lung transplant. It is the only way to extend and bring back some amount of quality of life back to myself, my family and the people around me. But most of all, it will give me time enough, maybe just time enough, that my Grandkids will remember who their Papa is, and where they came from. This means more to me than anything in the world.
That brings us back to why I am here, asking for help. The out of pocket cost, even with the insurance we are fortunate enough to have, for a double lung transplant would be devastating to my family and home with the financial burden it would cause. Something we have worked for all our whole adult life to attain, and would rather not give up. The post operative care is the most costly out of pocket cost. 3 months 24/7 care is required to even get listed for the transplant. This means Julie will have to take 3 months off from work. We will have to live across from the hospital during this first phase of rehab. Then 3 more months of traveling up to the University of Minnesota tri-weekly at first, then bi weekly, then weekly, monthly, trips up to the U of M for up to 6 months and for the rest of my life.
My Dad always said “Do just a lil bit better than good“ “and people will remember you for doing it” and “Everything you do in life WILL come back to you some day, so try to do more good, than bad.” Well I sure hope he was right, and I did enough good that it comes back to me now!!! My family and I need a helping hand.
Even if you can not donate, please just share this with everyone you can. This will help us get the word out. My family needs to, COUNT ON ME AGAIN, please help us make that possible.
There ya go, I gave it my best shot.
Thx for reading my story
Grant ( Scrappman ) Rappe
Well,,,, there is one more thing,, If I could get all the people I pissed off in the last 55 years to donate 10 bucks each,,,, quite possibly our goal would be reached in 1 day,,,,, 2 fold,,,, just say’n,,,,,hehee,,,,,Oh,,, ya,,,,
Thx again for taking the time to read my story.
Organizer
Grant Rappe
Organizer
Northfield, MN