Sixteen years ago, Kayleen received the gift of life through a double lung transplant that gave her a second chance to inspire those around her. With newfound breath, she embraced life to the fullest: she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Advertising Integrated Marketing Communication from Ferris State University, built a successful career, and created a beautiful life filled with love and joy.

Two years ago, in the best health of her life, Kayleen married the love of her life, Adam. Together, they purchased their first home and began planning a future full of dreams. They share their life with their two beloved dogs, Kahne and Luna, and enjoy spending time outdoors, camping, and being with friends and family, including Kayleen’s devoted parents Michael and Jenny, her sister Tabitha, brother-in-law Joe, three nieces, and a nephew. On July 22nd, Kayleen and Adam will celebrate their second wedding anniversary, a milestone filled with both incredible joy and unimaginable uncertainty.

In August 2024, during her family’s annual camping trip, Kayleen unexpectedly passed out and began feeling unwell. What seemed like a momentary scare was the beginning of a steady and devastating health decline that ultimately led to chronic lung failure. The lungs that once gave her a second chance are now in rejection, and her time with them is running out.

Kayleen has been approved and listed for a second double lung transplant, which is a rare and complex procedure, but it is one that brings renewed hope. She is currently hospitalized and dependent on a ventilator as she awaits a matching donor. Her medical team estimates several months of intensive post-transplant recovery, and there’s no way to know when that life-saving match will come. Time is critical.

Kayleen is surrounded by love. Her husband and parents have put their lives on hold to stay by her side, juggling the costs of maintaining their homes, securing temporary housing near the hospital, and bracing for the avalanche of medical expenses that come with long-term hospitalization, surgery, and aftercare.

This family has endured more than most can imagine. As a teenager, while others dreamed of college and life after high school, Kayleen was planning her funeral. She was facing death head-on. But she overcame the odds. Four days before her 20th birthday she got the call that saved her life and gave her a second chance. Her transplant was a successful one, but not without many hurdles along the way. Kayleen’s post-transplant recovery took longer than expected and she had to remain away from home and near the hospital for two years. After recovery from her first transplant, she built a life many only dream of that was fueled by her unshakable determination, her belief in better days, and her fight to live.

Now, she needs all of us.

We are humbly asking for your help through a donation, a share, or a prayer. Every dollar brings Kayleen and her family closer to covering the immense costs of this journey. Every share brings her story to someone new who might be able to help. Every prayer brings comfort, strength, and hope.

Let’s help Kayleen breathe freely again. Let’s show her that she is not alone in this fight. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for standing with Kayleen and her family during this deeply challenging time.

Overcoming the odds has always been Kayleen’s motto because she’s a fighter through and through. She always has been. Now, more determined than ever, she’s ready to win this battle and keep on living.