Help HOPE Live for Lukas Pelka

May 21, 2022

This update is from 5.19.22

Good Morning! We apologize for not updating sooner. It has been a whirlwind! Everything has been looking great Luke's surgery. It has been such a shift in mindset. Before surgery, every time Luke's hospital room door opened we would hold our breathe waiting to hear how Luke's condition had declined. Post surgery it was all smiles with each visit. Every visit was positive, letting us know his new heart and kidney were "perfect". Admittedly, it has been hard to accept that he is okay. At one point Luke's doctor had to tell Luke that he is "no longer his sick patient and that he needed to go see his patients who are really ill". 

So, eight days post operation, Luke was able to come home! As we left the hospital, the nurses lined the hall cheering and waving pom-poms to celebrate Luke's departure. It was so amazing to see all these people giving Luke such a special send off. When we arrived home Itsy, Gabby, and Rina were elated to finally have their Dad home with them. Our little family was finally all back together again. 

We still have a unknown road ahead of us but we have never felt more prepared. We cleared the hardest hurdle and now we just get to coast for a while. Luke's imminent heart transplant has been this giant scary thing that just sat on our shoulders. Now being on the other side we realize that we had been carrying this weight since his diagnosis. Fearing the day his doctor said " its time to start the transplant process". That day came and went. His transplant day came and went. Now we are on the other side. We both are a little lighter, a little stronger, and so filled with gratitude that his donor was able to get us to the other side. 

We will try to be better at updating you all along this journey. We tell everyone that we know it was a team effort. All your thoughts and prayers have helped get us here. We we will always be eternally grateful. 

May 12, 2022

Good Morning World! It is a new and brighter day! Yesterday Luke was extubated around 1:00 am. His nurse helped him give me a call so I was able to talk to him as soon as he was allowed to talk. Immediately Luke was cracking jokes and making me and his nurse laugh out loud.

At 5am he was already out of bed and sitting in a chair. He sent his family and me a photo letting us know he was ok. I arrived at the hospital around 8 am. As soon as his nurse saw me she said "he is doing great". When members of the transplant team stop by he is already asking questions about what his recovery will look like and what his "new normal" is going to be. Luke's doctors seemed and impressed and not at all surprised that he is already wanting to have a plan. They are encouraging him to rest and just focus on pain management.

Throughout the last few days we kept looking for/seeing signs. Luke's transplant nurse had a Halloween cap with skulls on it, his OR was number 16 ( my lucky number), he received his heart on the anniversary of my teammates passing, our local coffee shop having a literal sign saying "Its all going to be ok" ... god and the universe kept encouraging us that it was all going to be ok.

We know we have a long road of recovery ahead of but man are we thankful that we cleared this hurdle.

We cannot express how incredibly grateful we are for all the love and support we have received. Thank you , thank you , thank you! - Lexi