Rally For Ali

Ali Adams is one of the kindest and most caring souls I know. She’s also one of the bravest and most resilient. After all, she’s among the incredibly rare group of people to have a heart-and-double-lung transplant -- a surgery that is performed less than 30 times per year in the U.S.

Recovery has been difficult – physically, emotionally and financially. The challenges are stacking up for Ali, her husband – and my close friend – Louis, and their 12-year-old son, Jacob, which is why they need our help.

Ali’s Story

Born with a heart defect, Ali became far too familiar with doctors, hospitals and surgeries at a young age. Those experiences also taught her the importance of caring for others. She devoted much of her career to working for non-profit organizations that help people facing major health issues … until the time came for her to leave the workforce to focus on her own major health issues.

That was seven years ago. Five years ago, things got even worse, landing her on the organ transplant waiting list. She got “the call” in February. A new heart and a new pair of lungs were ready for her at Stanford Hospital in California. The transplant was a success, medically. However, her recovery has been slowed by many setbacks.

In September, she finally reached the milestone of moving out of the hospital and into an on-campus medical apartment. It allows her to live semi-independently (with her parents there to help) while still receiving care from her medical team at the clinic; she’s also close to the hospital in the event of an urgent problem – like a case of pneumonia that sent her back to the ICU in October, and an elevated heart rate/blood pressure issue that hospitalized her a couple weeks ago. (She is now out and back in the apartment.)

Ali originally hoped to be home by the end of summer. Well, Thanksgiving has come and gone, and Christmas is approaching, and she’s still there. Doctors need her to go several weeks without any setbacks before they’ll consider letting her return to Dallas.

Helping Ali, Louis and Jacob

Having a spouse or parent hospitalized and receiving care halfway across the country for more than nine months following such a complex surgery is more than enough to bear without considering the costs. Although the Adamses have been buoyed by the love and prayers of their family and friends all year, they now also need our financial support.

While insurance is covering much of the medical expenses, their credit cards are absorbing the cost of everything else – the biggest being the tab for that apartment (more than $900 per week), plus the expenses of airfare, lodging, transportation and meals related to every trip to/from Dallas and Palo Alto. And then there's the big unknown they are bracing for -- the Stanford bill. There's no telling how much out-of-pocket charges they are going to face. Remember, they’ve been a single-income family since Ali was forced to stop working. That necessary sacrifice has caught up to them.

So, let’s do what we can to ease their financial burden so they can keep their focus on what matters most -- getting Ali healthy and back home.

Thank you for any help you can provide. And if you’re not already following Ali's recovery journey on the PostHope website, you can find it here.