Support James Hackett's Lung Transplant Journey
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James Hackett, (Jamie to long time friends and family) has been one of the good guys, ALWAYS there for his friends and family, the dad to two amazing young men, Aidan and Nolan, and an adoring man to his fiancee, Kathy.
James (only 53) has been dealing with 2 autoimmune respiratory diseases that have progressively worsened over the past few years- Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF), a chronic lung disease that causes the lungs to become stiff and scarred, making it more difficult to breathe plus, Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD), which also decreases respiratory function. Currently on supplemental oxygen full time, James and his team of doctors have made the difficult decision to proceed with a potential lung transplant.
Recently, James has been accepted at UF Shands Hospital in Gainesville, Florida to begin his clinical review for a double lung transplant. While fantastic news, it comes with many challenges:
- James owns and operates his own company and will be unable to work for a several months as the procedure will require him to be in Gainesville for an extended period of time.
- James will be in the hospital for approximately 3-4 weeks while he recovers from surgery.
- Post surgery and extended rehab will require him to live in Gainesville, which is 4 hours from his and Kathy's home.
- Those who are his support will need a home base in Gainesville for the hospital and rehab time for those several months.
I am hoping, as one of his “moms”, that I can help ease the stress both James and Kathy are under due to this unfortunate situation. While we all believe in his full recovery, there will be a huge monetary burden placed on them.
This is a daunting task, and a daunting amount of an ask.
For James and Kathy to know this chapter in their lives won’t bankrupt them, I am asking for donations to James’s GoFundMe.
Now to know James, is to know he puts his boys first. Should there be funds that are not used, James's sons have requested the monies be used towards the Nicklaus Children's Foundation. Both boys have a genetic heart condition that is monitored closely by the physicians at the Nicklaus Children's Hospital. Through the years, Aidan has formed a personal relationship with Barbara Nicklaus and any donations over what is needed will be donated directly to Barbara and the foundation.
Thank you for this consideration,
Caryn (Hackett) St. John
Organizer and beneficiary
caryn st john
Organizer
Palm Beach Gardens, FL
James Hackett
Beneficiary