University of Florida Shands Hospital in Gainesville is taking wonderful care of her. She has been successfully treated tor hepatitis C and her liver cancer is in remission for now. Despite this, her only chance of continued survival is a liver transplant, the cost of which is overwhelming!

Linda Katie grew up in Tallahassee, FL and went to Leon High School. She worked at the Florida Department of Revenue for twenty-seven years, has 2 beautiful daughters, and 5 lovely grandchildren. She looks forward to once again cooking large family meals and spending lots of quality time with her granddaughter and 4 grandsons.

Family and friends know her as Linda Herrin, former co-workers know her as Katie Kelley. By whatever name, she is my sweet sister, a woman who has worked very hard all her life to take care of herself and her family. Linda Katie is by far one of the most generous people you will ever meet, always sharing whatever she has with her neighbors and their children. But now, she needs your help and in a big way.

Transplantation is life-saving, but it comes with tremendous out-of-pocket costs. Leading up to the transplant, she is responsible for travel, lodging, co-pays, and medications. Now that she is retired, her health insurance premiums are $700.00 per month and she can’t seek a less expensive policy because her transplant has been pre-approved by the existing insurance company.

After she receives the gift of life, the major expenses will come in. These costs will include several weeks of hospitalization, followed by 24/7 care in her home for several months, and frequent trips to Gainesville for follow-up appointments. She will also need to take upwards of 50 pills a day to keep her body from rejecting her new liver. As you can imagine, Linda Katie and our family now face a challenge we cannot meet alone.

To help with the financial burden of Linda Katie’s uninsured expenses, a fundraising campaign in her honor has been established with Help Hope Live, a trusted nonprofit organization that has been providing community-based fundraising guidance to patients and their families for more than 30 years. All donations are tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law, are held by Help Hope Live in the Southeast Liver Transplant Fund, and are administered by Help Hope Live for transplant-related expenses only. Please consider a contribution.
We were recently informed by Shands that we must have $10, 000 in the fund to cover aftercare before Linda Katie can receive her liver transplant.

Thank you so much for your prayers, support, and generosity. One last thing, if anyone would like to volunteer to help with the fundraising events, I sure would appreciate it!

Sincerely,
Betty Lahtinen