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On April 17, 2023 my younger brother, Kirk and his wife Shay welcomed their 2nd baby boy into this world, Rhett Charles Stechly. Rhett was born 13 days early and weighed 4 lbs. 3 oz. and seemed perfectly healthy. Unfortunately overnight they couldn’t regulate his body temperature and his blood sugar spiked to critical levels. Rhett was life flighted to WVU Children’s Hospital, and placed in the NICU. Over the past four weeks, Rhett has been through so much from genetic testing, around the clock sugar testing, and two blood transfusions. He has had a NG tube for feedings, and iv’s placed all over his body including his tiny head. High blood sugar in infants is rare and at such a low birthweight trying to find the right balance of insulin to feedings has been ongoing. He started to make small gains in weight but that was short-lived. Today we found out he is now down to 3 lbs. 14 oz. He now has to be fed through a PICC line to conserve what little energy he has. Kirk and Shay are trying to have Rhett transferred to Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, which ranks 6th in pediatric endocrinology.
Right now, Kirk and Shay live almost 2 hours from the hospital that Rhett is at and that will remain the same even if he is transferred to Pittsburgh. Shay is currently on maternity leave, but was to return to work next week. She is able to take FMLA to stay with Rhett but it will be unpaid. She currently works as a sonographer at an OB/GYN office. Kirk and Shay also have a three year old boy, Beau. Thanks to family they have been juggling care for him all while Kirk still works full-time and runs back-and-forth to the hospital to support Shay when he can.
Unfortunately, right now there are still no answers or a diagnosis and it appears that there is a long road ahead to finding answers. I wanted to start a go fund me to help relieve some of the stress during this very difficult time. Medical bills, cost incurred living away from the home, and a soon to be one income family for an unknown length of time has put a burden on their family. If anyone can help two amazing people and their two beautiful boys, I would greatly appreciate it and I know they would too. Thank you for taking the time to read this and God bless. Please share if you can.
Right now, Kirk and Shay live almost 2 hours from the hospital that Rhett is at and that will remain the same even if he is transferred to Pittsburgh. Shay is currently on maternity leave, but was to return to work next week. She is able to take FMLA to stay with Rhett but it will be unpaid. She currently works as a sonographer at an OB/GYN office. Kirk and Shay also have a three year old boy, Beau. Thanks to family they have been juggling care for him all while Kirk still works full-time and runs back-and-forth to the hospital to support Shay when he can.
Unfortunately, right now there are still no answers or a diagnosis and it appears that there is a long road ahead to finding answers. I wanted to start a go fund me to help relieve some of the stress during this very difficult time. Medical bills, cost incurred living away from the home, and a soon to be one income family for an unknown length of time has put a burden on their family. If anyone can help two amazing people and their two beautiful boys, I would greatly appreciate it and I know they would too. Thank you for taking the time to read this and God bless. Please share if you can.
Organizer and beneficiary
Shay Stechly
Beneficiary