Latest update as of Apr 24, 2024

  • Billy's labs are stable but they did add another medication for his heart. He is on like 10 different medications now but they seem to be doing what they are suppose to. He has an Echo cardio gram in June.
    We did setup his funeral arguments and started paying for his cremation. That was very hard and emotional but I wanted to get it started now so that way I didn't have to worry about it later on when I was trying to emotionally/financially deal with everything else.
    This whole thing has been very hard and I had an emotional breakdown the other day. I am looking into finding a counselor to talk to. I have been trying to be so strong for Billy and Dawson, that I haven't taken care of myself during all of this.
    He still wants to keep doing things that he has always done. Which he can to a point. He does get worn out more and cold very easily. If he's doing good we will attempt our first camping trip of the year next month. We are big tent campers, so this will definitely be an adjustment for us if he gets to cold and can't handle it. Where we normally go, it's a lot cooler then some places. As we discover what he can handle and can't we will make adjustments so that he can still enjoy those things. We are trying to make as many memories as possible and do things he wants to until he can't. He would really love to see the Grand Canyon and I am trying to see how to make that happen financially. I have had to put things on my credit card and money has been tight. We will see if we can make this happen. I would like to thank everyone for the love and support you have given my family during this time.


About this fundraiser

My husband Billy went to the hospital on Friday March 8th thinking he had pneumonia and found out that his heart was only squeezing at 10%. They sent him to Tacoma General and on Saturday we almost lost him. His HR went from 150 to 72 and BP from 130/119 to 99/58. They ended up putting in a Ballon pump to take some of the pressure off of his heart. His main arterie is 90% clogged. His heart is too damaged to do stints or a bypass. His only option is for an LVAD device but he's not a candidate at this time. The goal is to hopefully make it home with an IV and depending on his progress on the meds then possibly talk about LVAD in 6 months.  This is going to be a long process and there is no guarantee that he will make it out of the hospital or how long of life he truly has. His heart is very damaged and there is no coming back from the damage. 

I am not one to ask for help but I am the sole provider for my family and need some help with the financial burden this will put on us. Unfortunately he doesn't have medical at this time either but I am applying for programs to help us. I just need help with the extra fuel costs, food and whatever else may come our way. Lots of prayers for our family. 

Thank you for your time. 

April

Organized by

April Smith

Chehalis, WA, USA

Organizer