Dear family, friends, and kind strangers,

We hope this message finds you well. On January 3rd, Keith Pierre Jr. sought emergency care for intense stomach pain, and within hours, he was admitted to the CVICU. The first night his oxygen levels dropped down to 40% and the doctors had to quickly intubate him and place him on life support! The following day doctors told our family Keith has severe pancreatitis, his kidneys were shutting down and they placed him on CRRT - a slow continuous dialysis. Medical staff were not optimistic about Keith’s chances of survival and advised us to say our goodbyes as he would not make it. Keith’s mother, father and grandmother moved into the hospital and haven’t left his side since the doctors said that.

We cried as a family, and we prayed and just waited and hoped for a change in his condition! God answered! For 27 days Keith remained in a medically induced coma and on CRRT dialysis! Despite being told Keith wouldn’t make it he would give us little indications he was fighting! Squeezing our hands while we talked to him. Tears coming from his eyes and a small shake of his head when we asked him was, he still okay!

Eventually, as a family we were put between a rock and a hard place. Keith had been intubated too long, the breathing tube for such a long time was not ideal and was doing more harm than good. Keith now had pneumonia, plus a high fever and was desperate need of a tracheostomy.

Sadly, due to Keith’s body size and being so intensely swollen and full of fluid surgery was not ideal. An ENT assessed Keith and didn’t have the decency to tell our family he was declining the surgery for those reasons, so we waited in anticipation for 6 days. Finally, a trauma surgeon agrees to do the case but advised us that it was extremely dangerous, and he suggested that we should send Keith to a facility to pass away in peace.

But we know Keith! He would want to fight! He would want every opportunity to LIVE! If he was going down, he would want to go down swinging! Despite our fears we consented to the surgery.

A surgery that normally takes 20-45 minutes took 2 hours but once again Keith had made it. He survived!

Since the surgery Keith has improved drastically! He is no longer sedated; his kidneys have started to remove toxins, and he is urinating. So, dialysis has been stopped.

The road to recovery is not a linear path. Keith remains in the hospital he now has a NG tube for nutrition, his airway is now the trachea. He is still dealing with pancreatitis, pneumonia and an unrelated fever. He has a bed sore and remains tachypnea. He is trying to regain use of his limbs through OT/PT. Learning to talk with a speech therapist.

We have been counting our blessings and have been so incredibly grateful and thankful for the support we have received but, the financial strain of ongoing hospital expenses, gas, food, and everyday needs has taken a toll.

While Keith received support from his workplace, we have been informed that will be ending very soon. Keith will be responsible for finding insurance on the marketplace and paying the premiums out of pocket.

At this difficult time, we are asking for your support. Any contribution, no matter the amount, will be deeply appreciated as it will help cover Keith’s immediate needs and medical expenses. If you are unable to donate, we kindly ask for your prayers for Keith’s full recovery, and/or simply share.

Thank you for your kindness, love, and support.