My name is Stevie Cummins & I am trying to raise funds for medical bills for a dear friend of mine. Her name is Dusty Kirk & she is one of the hardest working women I have ever met. She has Pulmonary Sarcoidosis, which is a rare, chronic inflammatory disease affecting the lungs in 90% of cases, characterized by the formation of small, clustered immune cells called granulomas. It causes symptoms like persistent dry cough, shortness of breath, and chest pain . While it can be manageable with medication (e.g., prednisone) it can lead to permanent, severe lung scarring (pulmonary fibrosis) . Other areas that can be affected are Respiratory, Systemic, Skin, Eyes, & Heart/Neuro.

Dusty has Pulmonary Fibrosis in both lungs. She first became sick in 2000. She is affected in all areas listed above, with the exception of her eyes. She is allergic to steroids, which has made treatment challenging. And because her disease is progressive, she has to be seen in Denver at National Jewish Health, a specialty lung hospital. She goes 3 times a year if everything is stable. If she has any issues, she is there more often. Each trip is for a week or more at a time. She sees Pulmonologists, Cardiologists, Neurologists, Dermatologists, Rheumatologists and she has multiple tests. These include Respiratory Therapy, CT Scans, MRIs, Bone Scans, EKGs, Echocardiogram, EEG, and a long list of laboratory tests. Her last set of bloodwork alone was $15,000. These trips are extremely expensive.

Dusty carries two health insurance plans and a drug plan. While they pay a portion of her bills, there are still unpaid charges. This year, her policies increased in price and her coverage decreased. Not only does she have the necessary care in Denver, she has the monthly costs for medication. She has 3 inhalers alone. Her out of pocket for one is almost $600, another is $560, and the other is $470. The rest of her medication out of pocket is $375. These prescription expenses are every single month.

Dusty makes payments every single month without missing a payment to all of the providers where she has a balance to pay off. But recently, one of her providers (Not National Jewish Hospital ~ They have worked with her.) decided they wanted it paid off right away. They turned her over to collections, even though she never missed a month. They wanted a lot more every month. She has been given 60 days to come up with a huge lump sum.

Dusty is single and self-employed. She works 7 days a week. She not only has her custom hat business, but she also paints houses and does side gigs to make as much money as possible. The woman could not try harder. Trust me on that. She came to me wanting to know where to start on selling a family heirloom of her late mother's that she has cherished for many years. She was sobbing and just didn't know what else to do. I told her I wanted to help. If I had the money to give away, I would have just paid it all myself. She was too embarrassed to allow me to do this, but I talked her into it. If she was lazy and didn't pay her way in life, I wouldn't offer to help. But that is NOT the case with her. You will never find someone with more hustle than she has. She works HARD. So please help me help her.