The Steinmetz Family Needs Our Help and Prayers

Our friends and neighbors, the Steinmetz family, suffered a tragic and life-changing event on May 29th. While dad, Mike, was driving his eleven-year-old son, Ashton, to soccer, his heart suddenly stopped while waiting at an intersection. Ashton pulled the truck over to the side of the road (thank God above no one hit him) and felt for his dad’s pulse and there was none.  Ashton called 911 and got out of the truck to read the street signs to the operator.  He called his mom, Sandra. He waved for help, yet no one stopped. Arvada police and fire then arrived followed by paramedics who tried multiple times before being able to re-start Mike’s heart; however, he was without oxygen for 9 minutes. 
  
Sandra met them at Lutheran Hospital where she found Mike on a ventilator and unresponsive. The doctors ran a battery of tests as Sandra reached out to neighbors, friends, and family for their prayers. Groups gathered to pray, and prayer requests were sent to church prayer teams. 
 
Meanwhile, the doctors ruled out a heart attack, pulmonary embolism, aneurysm, blood clot, stroke and could not find the reason for Mike’s heart to have just stopped beating. The doctors ordered an MRI which returned devastating results. Mike suffered profound brain damage and while the brain stem was intact, the basic brain function and portions which made Mike, Mike, were gone. 
 
During the next several days, friends and family came to say “good-bye” to Mike. Sandra said the hardest thing she has ever experienced was seeing the pain and sadness in her children’s eyes as they held Mike’s hands, hugged him, and said “good-bye” to their dad.  
  
After saying goodbye to Mike, their dedicated husband and dad, Sandra, Ashton and daughter Madison, age fourteen, focused on donating Mike’s organs to give the gift of life to others. Sandra’s heart is broken. Ashton and Madi’s hearts are broken. Sandra is having to deal with being a widow and sole provider at a very young age.   
 
Mike was a proud, loving, and supportive father, husband, brother, son, and friend. He loved nothing more than being at his children’s athletic and school events. The family enjoyed traveling, sports, and other outdoor activities. They made many lifelong memories together. 
  
Please consider helping Sandra and her family.  Your donations at this time, will assist in supporting the family during this extremely challenging time by creating an emergency fund that can be used for funeral, medical, and transitional expenses as it will take some time to organize and determine a long-term plan for the family.  Your prayers are a blessing.