Please help me help Christina & Zach Biggerstaff!

I’ve never started a GoFundMe or any type of fundraiser before, so please excuse my inexperience at this. I’m not sure how to do this except to explain who I am, who I’m starting the fundraiser for and why it’s so important to me.

My name is Crystal and I’ve been employed at a local credit union since September 1999, currently holding the position of Branch Director. Our credit union is on the smaller side with the main office being where most of the employees work, and 3 branch offices which is where I work. Although there is some turnover at the credit union, there are many veterans who have been there between 15-30 years! This is where I will introduce my co-worker friend Christina. She’s worked at the credit union a few years longer than I have so I’ve known her over 20 years. My relationship with Christina is nearly 100% work-related, although there are a few personal aspects as well such as asking after each other’s family etc. Something happened at work a couple years ago that really bothered me and I texted Christina about it when I got home and we texted back/forth for a good 30-45 mins. She’s always been very easy for me to talk to and this time was no different. Felt better because I vented, knew what I was going to do with my problem at work the next day – all was good. This is who Christina is – she’s always ready to help and listen no matter what. Why is this important? Read on…

After venting I asked her how she and Zach (her husband and the reason for the fundraiser) and the kids were doing. She replied we’re good, although Zach was having some health issues. Of course I asked what was going on and she told me he hadn’t been feeling well over the past couple months, not sleeping well, no energy etc. He had a battery of tests done and the doctors weren’t sure what was going on with him. I could tell that this was very serious and I sensed how upset (rightly so) Christina was. Here I’m rambling on and on about my little problem at work and she’s dealing with some traumatic medical stuff with her husband and had been for some time!! This is what I mean about who Christina is – she’s dealing with her own stuff but talks to me as if she didn’t have a care in the world. Just open and willing to listen and help however she could.

And then there’s Zach – who I think I met once at a Christmas party years ago. I don’t really know him at all, I just know of him because he’s Christina’s husband. After many of the tests mentioned above, the doctors finally reached a diagnosis that Zach was born with a heart defect. He has what’s called a bicuspid aortic valve, which means his aortic valve only has 2 flaps that open/close instead of 3. Some patients that have the bicuspid aortic valve issue also develop electrical issues with their heart rhythm and Zach falls into this category. A pacemaker was installed to help with this condition, and although it’s helped a little it’s by no means a cure. Another consequence of having just the 2 flaps is that over time the valve will begin to lose the ability to seal properly (leaky valve), which makes it more difficult to push oxygenated blood throughout the body causing fatigue.

Many more tests after the pacemaker was installed and then successful open heart surgery to replace the leaky valve March 9, 2022 at the University of Chicago. The doctors were very happy with the outcome of the surgery and Zach’s progress regarding his recovery, so much so that Zach was discharged from the hospital March 14! His continued recovery at home was good, he healed nicely after surgery and the new valve was working as expected. His stamina had improved greatly, but it had plateaued and was not at the level doctors had hoped it would be 2 months after the surgery. A test revealed that Zach’s heart was weak and we didn’t know the root cause. A new pacemaker with additional capability and some adjustments to Zach’s medication was recommended by the cardiologist. The new pacemaker was installed (5/2022) along with the medication adjustment – it was time to wait and see if this worked.

Over the next year, Zach’s health could best be described as 1 step forward, 2 steps back. Each time he began to feel better, it was short lived. He was referred to Cleveland Clinic to see a heart failure specialist earlier this year. (Mar/April) They did a bunch of standard testing and added a few additional (heart failure) meds in hopes of making his heart stronger. There’s a measure of the heart’s pumping efficiency called ejection fraction. A normal reading is 55%, Zach’s reading had been hovering in the low 30’s. He had a follow-up visit at the end of June and his ejection reading was only 18%! They did admit him to the ICU at that time to try to remove some of the fluid buildup. The plan was to follow up with a scope of the inside of his heart for a full picture of the condition of the heart. Unfortunately, because Zach’s heart was already in such a weakened state they could not get as complete of a picture as they had hoped. Based on the findings of that test and the fact the heart failure meds haven’t helped, it appears there were only 2 options moving forward: a heart pump or a heart transplant.

Zach’s cardiologist believes the heart transplant will be the better long-term option, and he would be meeting with a team of doctors the next day to hopefully arrive at a consensus and then develop a game plan to move forward. After a few days, Zach was approved for a heart transplant! This was a very welcome step in the right direction for Zach because now he can be listed, and on the flip side of that it’s also a very telling statement of how bad Zach’s condition really is. This was a HUGE hurdle as Cleveland Clinic has VERY strict criteria that must be met before approval is met.

And this is where we are…or I should say where Zach and Christina are. Zach is on the heart transplant list and is waiting. They have relocated in hopes of improving their chances of receiving a heart. Part of the commitment of the relocation was agreeing to stay for at least 6-9 months after the transplant as Zach would need to be watched very closely during this time. They’ve left their home, their family, basically their life in hopes of saving Zach’s life. They’re away from their daughter who just started college at a local university, and their son who served in the Air Force and has just started a job with a local sheriff’s office after graduating from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy, along with parents and extended family. They have suffered with this for over 2 years and it’s not even close to being over for them. As if the suffering wasn’t enough, I can only imagine the financial burden/strain this has created for them. I know there has been a lot of missed work for Zach, and some for Christina as well. And the medical costs…even insurance through employers have limits, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if those limits have been reached, as well as any employee benefits for either one regarding sick/vacation time. This is why I feel they could really use some financial support and why I’m trying to help! Besides praying, and yes that’s incredibly powerful – this is the only other thing I can think of to help them. Please help me help them, everything that’s given will go directly to Christina and Zach. Thank you so much for reading my story, or I should say Christina and Zach’s story. I truly appreciate your time and hopefully support for them. Please keep Christina and Zach in your prayers!