Pennies & Prayers for Shane

Meet Shane! This 32 year old, vivacious young man had a whole life ahead of him. He had just proposed to the love of his life in December and even dreamed of starting a family in the near future. His plans were forever changed in mid April.

For those of you who don’t know, Shane has been critically ill at Roanoke Memorial Hospital for the past several weeks. On April 13 th , he was not feeling well, and fortunately his girlfriend April convinced him to go to the ER. We now know that his symptoms were due to a massive heart attack. While he was being examined in the ER, his heart stopped. The medical team performed CPR and shocked his heart back into rhythm. An urgent catheterization was done to remove a

large blockage in one of his coronary arteries. The procedure was successful, but damage from the heart attack left his heart muscle severely weakened. As a result, his body was in shock and his blood pressure was dangerously low. He was placed on advanced life support, including an ECMO pump, which is a machine that removes blood from the body, adds oxygen to it and pumps it back into the body to temporarily take the place of a weak heart and lungs. He stabilized on the pump, but multiple organ systems including his liver and kidneys were already damaged by the lack of blood flow. He has required dialysis and a number of other procedures to keep him going. His leg was also damaged by lack of blood flow and had to be amputated.

Finally, it now looks like Shane is turning the corner. He was taken off the ECMO pump and his heart seems to be holding its own. We are encouraged, but we know that Shane has months of recovery and rehabilitation ahead. We are thankful for all of the prayers and support, and would also be appreciative of any amount that could be spared for Shane’s recovery fund. Funds collected will go towards helping with moving Shane and April from their shared home to his Dad's house where he can be cared for 24/7. It will also help with remoldeling parts of the home to make it handicap accessible. He will need a ramp to get in and out of the home, a barrier-free shower stall and toilet update for a wheelchair and other amenities to make his new way of living less painful than it already is. No donation is too small to help!