Steven Autrey

My brother-in-law, Steven Autrey, is a man whose journey has been marked by silent battles and extraordinary courage. It began with a diagnosis of Crohn’s disease at the age of 14 and has continued with more than a dozen major diseases. He has spent most of his life navigating pain and uncertainty, often without saying a word about what he’s endured. Yet through it all, he’s continued to show kindness, hope, humility, and a quiet strength. Steven’s wife, my sister, Alicia, has described Steven as stoic. I thought I knew what stoic meant, but as I typed this, I looked it up, “a person who can endure pain or hardship without showing their feelings or complaining.” I think that pretty much sums Steve up.

At the age of 25, after being married just over a year, Steven discovered his Crohn’s had caused liver disease, requiring what would end up being the first of two liver transplants. The first was in June 1998, followed by another liver and kidney transplant in 2015. Now, 39 years after his first diagnosis he has endured hundreds of hospital stays and thousands of days treating more than a dozen major diseases, battling blood clots, cancers, strokes and even amputations.

All of this has taken its toll on Steven’s body, as the medicines and his conditions wear down his skin, joints, bones and organs. His mobility and quality of life have become more and more challenging as he fights to stay alive and continue to be a part of his wife and daughters’ lives. Since Steven is no longer able to work, Alicia juggles taking care of his medical needs while owning and running a boutique and working a sales job. Their oldest daughter lives with them to assist in Steven’s care but with Steve’s impending ankle surgery and possible additional amputation as well as ongoing wound care, they are going to need additional resources for comfort and care.

So many stepped up to help with Steven’s transplants and medical expenses not covered by insurance over the early years. And so many more have continued to reach out and ask how they can help this family that has clearly suffered greatly and lived through so much. It is for this reason that we have decided to rally support for his lifesaving care and reestablish their fundraising campaign, “We Love Steve – Better Together” so that Steven and his family can get the assistance they so desperately need to provide him the best quality of life possible.

HelpHOPELive, is a nonprofit organization that has been providing assistance to transplant patients for over 40 years. As they mark their 40th year of trusted medical fundraising, they are proud to have raised more than $181 million to help more than 20,000 families facing a transplant, injury, or illness access the health care and equipment they need to heal, live, and thrive.

For credit card contributions, please click the Donate Now button.

On behalf of Steven and his family, we thank you in advance for your prayers, support, and contributions; they are critical to the overall success of his struggle. Please keep checking this page or his Facebook page “We Love Steve” at https://www.facebook.com/liverated, as we will be updating you with the progress of the campaign and how you’ve assisted Steve and his family.

With sincere gratitude,

Kim Barton and Friends of the Autrey Family