Hallie Duncan Pifer Burton

Family and friends of Hallie Burton are raising money for the nonprofit Help Hope Live to fund uninsured medical expenses associated with a transplant. Hallie has chosen to fundraise with Help Hope Live in part because donations are tax deductible for contributors and will only be used to cover medical and related expenses.

Hallie is a 60-year-old woman in her small community in Virginia. In August 2023, she was diagnosed with Interstitial Lung Disease. ILD is broad category of over 200 lung disorders causing progressive scarring (fibrosis) or inflammation of the tissue around the air sacs. It causes severe, irreversible shortness of breath, dry cough, and reduced oxygen intake. Causes include environmental exposures (asbestos, dust), autoimmune diseases, and sometimes unknown factors. She worked in auto repair service shops for more than 20 years and it’s assumed this is how she developed ILD, however a cause has not been proven! As her Interstitial Lung Disease has progressed over the past few years, she now requires full-time oxygen, and breathing has become increasingly difficult as the scarring worsens. She is in need of a lung transplant. While it will be a 6 month to a year long journey with numerous out-of-pocket costs, one of those costs is relocating to Durham, NC to be near the Duke Pulmonary Clinic. Her husband TJ is her primary caregiver and will need to take leave from his job. This will leave them with 60% of his regular income. That’s two homes to maintain, their permanent residence and their temporary residence near Duke. In the meantime, Hallie is doing Pulmonary Rehab and meeting other goals to get to transplant. She and TJ are learning how to care of her new lungs with classes and training. Hallie loves to be outdoors with her seven grandchildren and friends and family. She enjoys fishing, kayaking, hiking and all sorts of outdoor activities! She’s fiercely competitive! Some will say she’s an awesome caregiver to many and is cheerful and helpful, has been a bright light in the lives of everyone who has known her. Since this diagnosis, Hallie has struggled with breathing, especially during exertion. This makes it hard to do even the simple things like light housework, laundry and making meals. A long walk is unsafe and when necessary she uses a wheelchair to cross long distances. Hallie is fundraising for those out of pocket expenses that insurance won’t pay for. Such as Pulmonary rehab, living expenses in Durham, and travel expenses to and from Duke. The insurance is paying $1.4 million dollars for transplant surgery and aftercare. A lot of costs are not covered or partially covered, which means more out of pocket for her and her family. Those costs could be $5,000.00 each month. That’s could be $30,000.00-$90,000.00 for the year. They have set a goal for this fund raising campaign at $20,000.00. Hallie is so excited to get her new lungs and be able to breathe and do all the things with her family that she loves. To be able to go without an oxygen tank attached to her arm will be so sweet! Please donate to Help Hope Live in Hallie’s honor today, and ask your friends and family to give, too! We would love to plan some fundraisers with you in Hallie’s honor too, so if you are able to help with that, please contact her daughter, Josie Dishon at [email protected] or Help, Hope, Live at https://helphopelive.org/campaign/27446/ Thank you for your generous support!