July 30, 2022
On May 2, 2022 Randy received his transplant. Later that evening he went into cardiac arrest and was thankfully brought back. After spending a week and a half in the hospital he was able to return home and start the healing process.
Things went fine for a few weeks with the kidney transplant but his doctors noticed that his incision was not healing. As it turns out Randy became infected with an incredibly rare bacterial infection that is similar to tuberculous. This is so rare that approximately 5 patients a year at UNC come down with the infection and unfortunately it can be very deadly. After a few surgeries to remove the infected tissue Randy was connected to a wound vacuum machine to help heal the deep incision area. Despite weeks of treatment by 4 different medical teams at UNC the decision has been made that they cannot remove the infection and protect Randy's kidney. The anti-rejection drugs Randy has been taking to protect his kidney will be discontinued which will allow his immune system to come back on-line and to work with the massive amount of antibiotics he is taking to beat this infection and go home.
As for his new kidney it will most likely stop working soon and Randy will return to dialysis. The kidney will stay in place because it is far too dangerous to remove it. Randy will be on antibiotics for the next 12-18 months and then he can return to the transplant list to try this all over again.
We are leaving the fundraiser open because the cost to fight the bacterial infection and to eventually get back to a kidney transplant is astronomical, but it is still the goal. The fight will be long and hard but Randy is determined to experience life without dialysis. Any help you can give to help reach his 9 plus year goal will of course be greatly appreciated. Randy has made it this far because of generous people like you.
April 15, 2021
Good morning people! Sorry I have not had an update in awhile but I am waiting for my kidney orientation class next month. I just need to be patient.
The t-shirts have arrived! Thanks again to Erin and Mandy for their hard work getting them done. If you have one please send us a picture for the wall.
I am holding off on the auction for now because I may be close to my goal. It may not seem like it but I hate doing this stuff just to get a kidney but here I am. One more push and I can probably just stop and concentrate on getting well. More on this later.
Y'all have a wonderful day
March 15, 2021
You people are awesome because we are $13,000 away from our goal!!!!
Why not go ahead and shirt yourself today! I ordered purple
February 24, 2021
3 years. 3 years ago I met with my cardiologist and I got the awful news that I had congestive heart failure and that my heart was not strong enough for a transplant. I was also told there was NOTHING I could do about it. I stopped posting about my kidney stuff and I put my head down and I kept living. Fast forward to late last year I found myself in the hospital for an infection and I got a heart CT scan to make sure the infection was not on a valve. When I got home I got an urgent message from my cardiologist to come in. I just knew I was going to die so I mentally prepared myself and I went in for the bad news.
My doctor came in the appointment room and she had the biggest, goofiest smile I had ever seen on her face. She then told me that she had never seen me look like this and that she almost did not recognize me. She brought up my current scan and showed me the scan from 3 years ago. All the fluid (congestion) around my heart was gone. She said she had never seen this happen before and that she wanted me to get a heart catherization to make sure that what she was seeing was correct.
That test was this past Thursday. She was right and my heart numbers are normal. She is putting in the paperwork for me to get a transplant.
I am still in a state of shock. I know that anything can happen but my prognosis is pretty good. I am sure over the next few months I will get back to bugging y'all to contribute to my fundraiser again (transplant run around $400,000) but not today. Today I just want to share with my friends that no matter what DO NOT GIVE UP! Anything is possible. Sometimes you just have to put your head down and grind it out and it may take years to see that pay off but it will. Put your faith in God or whatever you believe in and keep going!
December 31, 2018
Good morning friends and family!
As we close out this old year and look forward to the new I am feeling very optimistic about the future. I have an appointment for January 14th. where they will check my liver and heart. If things go well I should be on the path to my new organs.
Thank you to all of you that have contributed to my fundraiser. Dialysis alone is $15,000 a month and insurance only cover 80%. If you are looking for end of the year tax deductions please consider making a donation to my fund (https://helphopelive.org/campaign/11445/). I really appreciate it :)
Have a absolutely wonderful New Year! May all your hopes and dreams come true!89
December 16, 2018
Well good people it has been over a year since I have posted anything here and there is a good reason why. Bear with me because this may take a bit to explain :)
I have been trying to get on the transplant list and it just isn't going to happen...right now. My kidneys have caused damage to my heart so that if I get a new kidney it won't last. Please know I am fine but if I want a new (to me) kidney I will need a new heart to make sure the kidney stays healthy.
So what does all that mean? It means you can start calling me the Tin Man! I don't want to be on dialysis forever so I am going to get me one of those new hearts :)
Please know that I am fine. I am not in any danger of kicking the bucket now or in the near future. I need the heart IF I want a new kidney. I could go without but I think a life without dialysis isn't too much to ask for.
Since all of this is going to cost an arm and a leg I am once again going to start taking donations to my HelpHopeLive page. With the end of the year coming up if you want to make a tax deductible donation to my fund I would really appreciate it (https://helphopelive.org/campaign/11445/)
December 22, 2017
This campaign was featured on social media @helphopeliveorg!
December 27, 2016
Good morning people! I am sorry it has been so long since I have posted but I have had a medical issue that I needed to have evaluated. It turns out I have pulmonary hypertension in the right lobe of my heart. To make sure that is the right diagnosis they are going to run a line into my heart next month to check the pressure. The three main reasons this happens are high blood pressure, dialysis and your kidneys going bad. The fix is getting a kidney :) There is a possibility that it may be something else and if so they want to know so they can treat it.
When I get tested next month they will know what the deal is and what to do. Since we are shooting for next summer this should not affect the transplant schedule.
So the bottom line is that I am fine. The upside is that if I get this treated I could actually get more energy way before I get my new kidney which would be great!
As always remember you can head over to my donation page and kick in a little something. If you do it before the first you can write if off on your taxes!
Happy holidays friends!
October 25, 2016
Good morning people! I have completed all the stuff I needed to do to be on the transplant list at UNC! Come on out next week and help us celebrate at Chick-fil-a! And as always if you can't join us feel free to stop by my fundraiser page and leave a little something (https://helphopelive.org/campaign/11445)
October 10, 2016
It is official our next event is with Chick-Fil-A on Hillsborough Road in Durham on November 2nd.! Please save the date and we will post more details as soon as we get them.
October 6, 2016
Hello friends and family! I thought I would give you guys a break after hitting it so hard for our first fundraiser. For the next one we will be working with Chick-Fil-A! I promise to give you plenty of notice for that one. We are also planning an online auction so if you have some sort of talent that you think people would be interested in experiencing please let me know. So far we have people donating financial advisory sessions, a home cooked dinner, from scratch cookies and much more! As always thanks and feel free to head over to my Help Hope Live page (https://helphopelive.org/campaign/11445) and make a donation. Have a great day!
September 23, 2016
Our fundraiser went really well. Thank you all for the support!
September 21, 2016
Today is the day! Come out to BW3 today, show a copy of the ticket, and 10% of your bill will be donated to our fundraiser. Remember if you can't make it you are free to make your own wings and donate at our page. I look forward to seeing a lot of you tonight at 7:00PM! https://helphopelive.org/campaign/11445
September 15, 2016
Good morning friends and family! One week from right now you will be waking up with orange lips and a deep sense of satisfaction knowing that you helped me. Remember next Wednesday to print out your golden ticket and give it to your server at BW3. Miranda and I are eating dinner at BW3 at 7:00PM and we would love for you to join us. If you can't come you are welcome to go to my fundraiser page and donate what you would have spent ;)
September 11, 2016
Good morning people and happy Sunday! We are about a week and a half away from our first fundraiser at BW3 and so far the response has been great! Remember to come out at some point on 9/21, show your ticket to your server and enjoy some wings (or burgers, or a sandwich, whatever). You must give them a ticket for it to count. Oh and if you want some company Mandy and I will be having dinner at 7:00PM so please come join us!
September 2, 2016
Our first fundraiser is set! Come by BW3 in Durham on September 21, give them the ticket for Randy's event, and 10% of your bill we be donate.
August 21, 2016
Good Sunday everybody! Friday I got to spend the entire day at UNC doing all of the heart testing that is required for me to be on the transplant list. They did not make me check in to the hospital so I am assuming that nothing is too bad with my heart. It feels good to be one step closer to getting my transplant.
For you folks in the Durham area please save September 21 on your calendars because it looks like that is the date we will be doing a fundraiser at the BW3 by South Point Mall. Details coming soon.
Tomorrow is the official start to my new semester at WCU. 4 semesters down and 3 to go!
Again I want to thank you guys for all the love and support I have received. For those of you who have not sent love and support what the heck are you waiting for??!!??
Randy.
August 11, 2016
So I came in to some not so good news today folks. It turns out my blood is not getting as clean as it needs to be after treatment (dialysis). How clean my blood is affects (effects?) how I feel and my overall health. The way they want to improve my numbers is by using a larger dialyser (no big deal) and by sticking EVEN LARGER NEEDLES IN MY ARM!!! If I don't agree then they could tell my transplant doctors and that could come across as me not being complaint with could make them think twice about giving me a new kidney.
So bye-bye to Mr. Stabby and hello to Mr. Super Stabby! Happy Thursday!
August 5, 2016
We have raised $1,100 in 2 days! You guys are fantastic! It looks like we are going to have a beer and burgers event next month at a local business. As soon as we work out the details I will let all of you know.
Thank you so much for the love!
August 4, 2016
Hello friends! As most of you probably know I have been on dialysis for the last 2.5 years and as much fun as it has been it is time for a change. My best friend in the whole wide world Damon Thompson has decided to try to give me one of his kidneys for transplant next summer. I am humbled by his graciousness and I am looking forward to this next chapter in my life.
The cost of this little surgery is about $256,000 and I am fortunate that insurance will pay about 80% of it. As far as the rest we have decided to do a fundraiser through HelpHOPELive. HelpHOPELive (HHL) is a 5013C organization that will be handling all the money raised and we will submit the medical bills to them for payment from the fundraiser funds. This helps me avoid any problems with the IRS.
If you have the means to help me with this endeavor then please do and know that it will be greatly appreciated. In the future we plan to do events like an online auction to raise additional funds and to have some fun.
Thank you for taking the time to read this long damn post.
Randy.
PS I have a Facebook fundraiser page- https://www.facebook.com/randysfundraiser/
and a page at Help Hope Live- https://helphopelive.org/campaign/11445
