Steve & Claire Crochet: A Heart-felt Need

Hello, I'm Toni Padeway, older sister of Steve Crochet. I'm establishing this Go Fund Me campaign on behalf of Steve and his wife Claire. Steve recently had his 4th (and hopefully final) heart attack followed by an open-heart bypass surgery. The funds from this Go Fund Me campaign will allow them to delay the Grand Opening of their Whynot Lodge while he recuperates from this major health crisis. The lodge is their single source of income and therefore, delaying its opening is creating an eminent financial burden. But, let me tell you more…

Steve and Claire have embarked on an amazing journey that has them homesteading on the edge of Big Horn National Park, just outside of Ft. Smith, MT with the hope of opening the Whynot Lodge; a lodge for fishing enthusiasts that seek an amazing, one- of-a-kind experience.

In their first year, Steve and Claire worked tirelessly to build out a professional grade guest suite at the Whynot Lodge. The Lodge and land are a constant work in progress as it is as rustic as can be. They are committed to giving their future guests a once in a lifetime experience.

After a long winter and record snowfall, Steve was working to get them back to the homestead/lodge. See, they are so rustic that some winters do not allow people to stay home for the season. This was the case these past few months. In the future, they expect to spend the winter months at the Lodge. The final couple of miles were packed with over 3 ft of heavy winter snow. Steve, in his great passion for their land, tried to make a passage but it was too much. He ended up at St Vincent’s Hospital in Billings and subsequently had bypass surgery.

Currently, they are having to rent temporary housing in Billings so that Steve can fully recover from his bypass surgery. He needs cardiac physical therapy and time for his chest to mend from, as he puts it, “having his rib cage splayed open!”

What this all comes down to is this. Steve and Claire were on the verge of launching their business, the Whynot Lodge, and it came to a screeching halt when this medical emergency hit him. The good news is that he will be like a new man once he's back to full health. His spirits are high, he's devoted to following the doctor's instructions and his will is strong!

Please consider contributing to this GFM so the opening of the Whynot Lodge will only be delayed, and their dream will live on.