StrideSTRONG
Donation protected
The ❤️ #StrideSTRONG ❤️ campaign is to benefit our dear friend, a true heart warrior, Charles Thomas Stride ("Tom"). For those who are not familiar with our story, here is some background.
Tom is 51 years young, a family man, supported by his wife of 28 years, Lori and three children, Tommy (25), Lauryn (21) and Angelina (19). Tom was born with congenital heart disease (single ventricle), a specifically complex congenital corrected with a Fontan repair at age sixteen. Tom has been on the heart/liver transplant list for over two years, and has spent over 150 days inpatient at Penn Medicine ("HUP") only to be told that HUP would be removing him from their program due to risk inherent in the procedure. A major disappointment for the entire #StrideSTRONG team, HUP referred Tom to Vanderbilt, being the only realistic remaining option for a successful dual-organ transplant. So the #StrideSTRONG convoy got on the road to Tennessee and met with the transplant team at Vanderbilt. While totally overwhelming, a ray of hope develops, the Vanderbilt team accepted Tom into the program.
The time has now come for Tom to take the next steps necessary to get a heart and liver transplant. Unfortunately, those next steps will take him and Lori on at least a year long journey to Nashville, Tennessee where Tom will be inpatient for many months, under the care of Vanderbilt University's transplant team, the only facility in the country with the confidence to accept Tom into their care. #StrideSTRONG funds will help alleviate not only medical expenses, but also the costs associated with lodging and transportation for Lori and family while in Tennessee so she can be Tom's side, supporting him, for likely a year or more. This will also help with ongoing costs of maintaining their home back in Philly, and the additional costs of family health insurance as Lori will no longer receive coverage once she stops working as a healthcare professional.
To make a long story short, the Stride Family, will need to incur minimally an additional $100,000 in expenses to get our own IronMan, Tom, a new heart and liver while taking a major hit to their household income. The ask here is not small, but the need is real and urgent for this #StrideSTRONG campaign as Lori and Tom now prepare to uproot and head south to Nashville. No amount donated is too small and every penny is appreciated. Please share on your socials, sometimes it takes a village. THANK YOU! ❤️
#StrideSTRONG Campaign cannot thank enough all of our SUPPORTERS! #StrideSTRONG is currently being established as a 501c3 registered charitable organization, this information will be shared as soon as available.
For more information on Tom's medical condition and history, we encourage you to read on:
The road from childhood into adulthood has been long and difficult. As mentioned above, Tom was born with congenital heart disease. A form of congenital heart disease so complex and rare, that a surgical procedure wasn't even available to him until 1986, when at age 16, he underwent a Fontan procedure at Deborah hospital. To be more specific, a non-fenestrated modified Fontan operation. Over the next twenty-two years, there were countless trips to various cardiac specialists from Deborah, Hahnemann, and Boston Children's Hospital.
Then during the summer of 2008, Tom had what can be described as an AFIB episode treated at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia ("CHOP"). This started with an ablation of flutter circuit in the right atrium followed by a VT/VF arrest at home in his driveway. This resulted in a Fontan conversion, a dual chamber ICD (pacemaker) was implanted in December of 2008 after spending over 90 days at CHOP.
For the next several years, Tom's condition was stable but not without regular treatment, multiple medication adjustments and two procedures in 2012 and 2016 to maintain the dual chamber ICD unit. Then during 2018, Tom's primary cardiologist said it was time to embark on Tom's eminent heart transplant journey, as the cumulative affect of years of medications required to maintain his health have caused collateral damage on his liver and kidney functions.
Tom is 51 years young, a family man, supported by his wife of 28 years, Lori and three children, Tommy (25), Lauryn (21) and Angelina (19). Tom was born with congenital heart disease (single ventricle), a specifically complex congenital corrected with a Fontan repair at age sixteen. Tom has been on the heart/liver transplant list for over two years, and has spent over 150 days inpatient at Penn Medicine ("HUP") only to be told that HUP would be removing him from their program due to risk inherent in the procedure. A major disappointment for the entire #StrideSTRONG team, HUP referred Tom to Vanderbilt, being the only realistic remaining option for a successful dual-organ transplant. So the #StrideSTRONG convoy got on the road to Tennessee and met with the transplant team at Vanderbilt. While totally overwhelming, a ray of hope develops, the Vanderbilt team accepted Tom into the program.
The time has now come for Tom to take the next steps necessary to get a heart and liver transplant. Unfortunately, those next steps will take him and Lori on at least a year long journey to Nashville, Tennessee where Tom will be inpatient for many months, under the care of Vanderbilt University's transplant team, the only facility in the country with the confidence to accept Tom into their care. #StrideSTRONG funds will help alleviate not only medical expenses, but also the costs associated with lodging and transportation for Lori and family while in Tennessee so she can be Tom's side, supporting him, for likely a year or more. This will also help with ongoing costs of maintaining their home back in Philly, and the additional costs of family health insurance as Lori will no longer receive coverage once she stops working as a healthcare professional.
To make a long story short, the Stride Family, will need to incur minimally an additional $100,000 in expenses to get our own IronMan, Tom, a new heart and liver while taking a major hit to their household income. The ask here is not small, but the need is real and urgent for this #StrideSTRONG campaign as Lori and Tom now prepare to uproot and head south to Nashville. No amount donated is too small and every penny is appreciated. Please share on your socials, sometimes it takes a village. THANK YOU! ❤️
#StrideSTRONG Campaign cannot thank enough all of our SUPPORTERS! #StrideSTRONG is currently being established as a 501c3 registered charitable organization, this information will be shared as soon as available.
For more information on Tom's medical condition and history, we encourage you to read on:
The road from childhood into adulthood has been long and difficult. As mentioned above, Tom was born with congenital heart disease. A form of congenital heart disease so complex and rare, that a surgical procedure wasn't even available to him until 1986, when at age 16, he underwent a Fontan procedure at Deborah hospital. To be more specific, a non-fenestrated modified Fontan operation. Over the next twenty-two years, there were countless trips to various cardiac specialists from Deborah, Hahnemann, and Boston Children's Hospital.
Then during the summer of 2008, Tom had what can be described as an AFIB episode treated at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia ("CHOP"). This started with an ablation of flutter circuit in the right atrium followed by a VT/VF arrest at home in his driveway. This resulted in a Fontan conversion, a dual chamber ICD (pacemaker) was implanted in December of 2008 after spending over 90 days at CHOP.
For the next several years, Tom's condition was stable but not without regular treatment, multiple medication adjustments and two procedures in 2012 and 2016 to maintain the dual chamber ICD unit. Then during 2018, Tom's primary cardiologist said it was time to embark on Tom's eminent heart transplant journey, as the cumulative affect of years of medications required to maintain his health have caused collateral damage on his liver and kidney functions.
Organizer and beneficiary
Frank Mcanally
Organizer
Newtown Township, PA
Lori Stride
Beneficiary