Rhoads Family Medical and Emergency Fund

Action Jackson: 
A CF Warrior Inside & Out!

Our son Jackson was born with Cystic Fibrosis and has battled with it for the past nine years of his life. CF is a progressive disease (with no cure) that affects the lungs, pancreas and liver and can lead to diabetes and other related health issues. Over the last 3 years the disease has started taking a serious toll on him. So much that I (his father) had to resign from a job I had for almost ten years to stay home and keep him healthy. 

On the outside Jackson is a sweet, funny, fun-loving rambunctious boy full of wonder with a heart warming, joyous laugh. On the inside, is an unseen, endless war his body fights everyday against cystic fibrosis with all the medications and breathing treatments to stay healthy so he can experience the simple things in life that every kid wants to enjoy.


I am so proud of Jackson’s tenacity and resilience. He is only 9 and has been through way more than me in my 40 some odd years. Since his birth he has had countless doctor and specialist visits, CT scans and x-rays, needle pokes in the arm for blood draws over and over, Covid nasal swabs, IV’s and PICC lines inserted into his body, and bronchoscopy procedures. Since the age of 6 he’s had, several outpatient procedures, 5 hospital stays, 3 of them ranging 18 to 26 days for lung infections and issues with his cystic fibrosis related liver disease. 

On top of all that his daily life consists of swallowing over 20 pills, inhaling 5 different medications for 45 minutes 2 times a day in the morning and evening before bed. This is on a good day. If a cough unexpectedly arises his breathing treatments are to be increased up to 4-5 times a day, every 3 hours and even some done overnight as he tries to sleep.

Maintaining his health care is costly and even with insurance still so much cost is put into specialist doctor visits, labs and tests, medications and unexpected hospital stays of 14-20 days or more. 

Over the years we have accumulated a huge amount of medical debt. It was so overwhelming that my wife and I stopped opening medical bills so that we could focus on keeping up with our mortgage and paying other necessary bills that provide a stable home for our family.