Hongyu Lai Medical Fund
Donation protected
She blessed us with her love and sacrifices. Now her liver threatens to steal her away.
The Backstory
After saving money and making sacrifices for a number of years, Hongyu Lai and her husband were able to send their daughter Zhuozhen Cai to Oklahoma City to live as a Chinese exchange student. Zhuozhen immediately captured our hearts with her gentle ways and brilliant mind. I was personally blessed by her friendship, making countless memories during our time together. Two years later, her friends across the world cheered her on as she just completed her first year as a Mathematics major in college.
But as the semester came to a successful close, troubles at home began to make their presence known. Coming from a close family, she knew something was seriously wrong when she did not hear from her mom, Hongyu Lai, for a few days. Her heart broke when she learned her mom has become extremely ill, experiencing acute liver failure.
The Cost
In order to keep Zhuozhen’s mom alive until a suitable donor liver can be found, the hospital has to change out Hongyu Lai’s blood on a daily basis. Because of the level of intensive care needed, and her being in Guangzhou, one of the largest cities in China, the medical bills are extremely high even by Western standards. Over the past 37 days, her care has totaled $156,765 when converted to U.S. Dollars. The cost of moving forward with a transplant will cost approximately $110,000 USD which does not include the required hospital stay afterwards or the medication costs. Altogether, the cost of her care before and after, plus the transplant itself, will total around $350,000 to $400,000 USD. This number is absolutely intimidating, but we’re off to a beautiful start in relieving this deserving family.
Of the total anticipated cost, her insurance will pay for about $125,000 USD of the bill, and thanks to Hongyu Lai’s generous and selfless friends and former college classmates, another $140,000 USD has been raised so far. This leaves the family with a remaining of at least $85,000 USD, which is still a heavy burden for a family who makes a small portion of what we do in the West. And that’s where we come in!
The Importance & Impact
It is truly extraordinary to witness the lengths to which Hongyu Lai's friends and former college classmates have gone in order to make a life-saving liver transplant possible. To ensure Hongyu Lai’s continued treatment, many of them have rushed to their banks and personally borrowed as they are able, raising around $140,000 USD already, testifying just how loved and special Hongyu Lai is. Unfortunately, two-thirds of what these friends have contributed are loans and will have to be repaid by Zhuozhen’s family. So in reality, Zhuozhen and her family actually need close to $180,000 USD to recover from this overwhelming situation. However, our current focus is to fight for the $85,000 USD simply so that we can at least ensure that Hongyu Lai will receive treatment and live.
Zhuozhen and her family are deeply loved by all those around them in China and their many friends here in America. Although their burden is great, our goal is to do everything we can to ease their hardship and give them hope of healing and restoration of life. Please consider giving any amount that you can, and with Zhuozhen’s blessing, we ask all those who believe to pray fervently in Jesus’ Name for the return of a healthy mother to the kind and gentle young woman we have been blessed to call our friend.
“You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that I, the Son, can bring glory to God, the Father.” ~Jesus (John 14:13)
The Backstory
After saving money and making sacrifices for a number of years, Hongyu Lai and her husband were able to send their daughter Zhuozhen Cai to Oklahoma City to live as a Chinese exchange student. Zhuozhen immediately captured our hearts with her gentle ways and brilliant mind. I was personally blessed by her friendship, making countless memories during our time together. Two years later, her friends across the world cheered her on as she just completed her first year as a Mathematics major in college.
But as the semester came to a successful close, troubles at home began to make their presence known. Coming from a close family, she knew something was seriously wrong when she did not hear from her mom, Hongyu Lai, for a few days. Her heart broke when she learned her mom has become extremely ill, experiencing acute liver failure.
The Cost
In order to keep Zhuozhen’s mom alive until a suitable donor liver can be found, the hospital has to change out Hongyu Lai’s blood on a daily basis. Because of the level of intensive care needed, and her being in Guangzhou, one of the largest cities in China, the medical bills are extremely high even by Western standards. Over the past 37 days, her care has totaled $156,765 when converted to U.S. Dollars. The cost of moving forward with a transplant will cost approximately $110,000 USD which does not include the required hospital stay afterwards or the medication costs. Altogether, the cost of her care before and after, plus the transplant itself, will total around $350,000 to $400,000 USD. This number is absolutely intimidating, but we’re off to a beautiful start in relieving this deserving family.
Of the total anticipated cost, her insurance will pay for about $125,000 USD of the bill, and thanks to Hongyu Lai’s generous and selfless friends and former college classmates, another $140,000 USD has been raised so far. This leaves the family with a remaining of at least $85,000 USD, which is still a heavy burden for a family who makes a small portion of what we do in the West. And that’s where we come in!
The Importance & Impact
It is truly extraordinary to witness the lengths to which Hongyu Lai's friends and former college classmates have gone in order to make a life-saving liver transplant possible. To ensure Hongyu Lai’s continued treatment, many of them have rushed to their banks and personally borrowed as they are able, raising around $140,000 USD already, testifying just how loved and special Hongyu Lai is. Unfortunately, two-thirds of what these friends have contributed are loans and will have to be repaid by Zhuozhen’s family. So in reality, Zhuozhen and her family actually need close to $180,000 USD to recover from this overwhelming situation. However, our current focus is to fight for the $85,000 USD simply so that we can at least ensure that Hongyu Lai will receive treatment and live.
Zhuozhen and her family are deeply loved by all those around them in China and their many friends here in America. Although their burden is great, our goal is to do everything we can to ease their hardship and give them hope of healing and restoration of life. Please consider giving any amount that you can, and with Zhuozhen’s blessing, we ask all those who believe to pray fervently in Jesus’ Name for the return of a healthy mother to the kind and gentle young woman we have been blessed to call our friend.
“You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that I, the Son, can bring glory to God, the Father.” ~Jesus (John 14:13)
Organizer
Bethany Hatch
Organizer
Oklahoma City, OK