Summer- living donor to husband Edwin

My husband and I cannot begin to thank you for the financial assistance you provided us during a very stressful time.

 
It has only been a year since we got married, and we have been through more than anyone should have to handle in their first year of marriage. It is kind of a coincidence but it was also our first year of dating, almost seven years ago, that my husband’s PSC liver issues began. We met at the Penn State Bookstore on University Park campus. It had been a year of working many Saturday afternoon football games until we expressed any interest in each other romantically. Throughout our years of dating, his illness was well managed, but left him fatigued, which is common with any PSC patient.

 
Everyday before surgery had been a struggle both emotionally and financially. The uncertainty of the future weighed heavy upon us. It wasn’t until this past spring when my husband suddenly went into stage three liver cirrhosis that life took a turn for the worst. There was no fix for his liver, he was going to need transplant. Thankfully, he was an excellent candidate for live donation and was the same blood type as me. I had high hopes for us being a match, since his disease was time sensitive, and it wasn’t until this past summer that I was tested. When my results came back a week after testing, a huge weight was lifted, I was a match. Now we had to set a date, and the sooner the better. For me, I was ready to go anytime, and knew we would somehow make everything work financially even if we had to take out a loan, but my husband reacted differently. He wanted to wait for financial reasons, but was finally convinced to go ahead with this year. So, we decided to celebrate our one year anniversary on October 27th and nine days later, we headed into this life altering experience. Although it was challenging, I would do it again in a heartbeat. I love my husband dearly, and proudly look forward to telling our story to others in the many days to come.

 
If it weren’t for your financial assistance, we wouldn’t have felt as at ease going into this situation. Thank you for caring and providing the support that was needed to us during this stressful time. We will always remember your kindness as we look back on this critical point in our lives.

Summer and Edwin

12/03/2013