Honoring John Eckert in his Final Chapter

Update: We’ve been on quite the journey since last week when my dad was discharged after his unexpected amputation surgery.

He made it home on Friday 2/28, and unfortunately, Sunday night he experienced a mild heart attack landing him in another hospital in Tulsa, where he (and I - Lindsay) spent all last week. The cause of the heart attack was determined to be from a “provoked heavy burden” of blood clotting in both legs and up into both lungs as a result of the amputation surgery.

Along with the extensive clotting, we received the results of a CT scan completed just before he was discharged last week showing a large mass in his stomach along with lesions on his liver, kidneys, intestines and other organs. Originally he had plans for a biopsy procedure to be completed to determine what the mass is, however because of the extensive clotting, the risks outweigh the benefit of moving forward with the procedure.

Given all that has transpired, doctors expect he may have about three to six months left. He has elected to decline any treatment for the mass/lesions and instead prioritize the best quality of life possible with his remaining time. He is in good spirits about it, at peace with his decision, and eager to get home and learn how to use his new toy, a wheelchair, to get around as much as he can and enjoy his time at home.

While this news is absolutely devastating, God’s blessings have been abundant in many ways. He’s totally coherent and able to make decisions for himself (a huge blessing!). He gets to choose how and where he lives the rest of his days (what a gift to choose!), and this time he and I have had together in the hospital last week 1:1 has been absolutely precious to both of us. Praise be to our loving God who never promises life will be easy, but who does promise to be with us through it all!

He has been discharged and is back home as of Friday, 3/7. We would appreciate allllllll the prayers for him to be strong enough and able to navigate without his left foot, and that he truly feels comfortable at home for as much time as God has left for him! All donations will be used to ensure he has what he needs to enjoy his days, and to help pay for the unimaginable amount of medical bills mounting from the past month. We are so grateful for your support. - with abundant love and gratitude, his daughter Lindsay (Ibis), and his wife Pam.

Im Pam Eckert. My husband (John Eckert) has been in the hospital for almost a week now. He had a 100% closed artery. They did surgery and corrected the issue. In the mean time, he's been struggling with pneumonia, liver issues and dead tissue. Now they're saying he has sepsis. His foot is dying. They are waiting to do amputation because they don't want to rush things and end up having to do the surgery multiple times. 2 days ago it was his toes, yesterday it was half a foot. I haven't seen his foot yet today, but the doctor said it was a little worse than yesterday. The whole situation is heart breaking. The hospital is 2 1/2 hours away. Been trying to stay at a hotel, but those things are outrageously high. Other days, I'm driving there after my son gets home from work. I visit for a little while and try to make it back home by 1 am. Neither of us were prepared for a situation like this. It looks like he's going to be there a lot longer. Anything that you can give will be extremely helpful.