July 8th: 

A little update on my dad, Mike: his diagnosis is now confirmed. He has a prion disease called Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). It’s been emotionally exhausting for our entire family, as well as physically exhausting for my mom. This disease unfortunately takes away both cognitive and physical abilities extremely quickly. We’re taking things day by day, but each day things get more challenging. A hospital bed is being delivered today as he can no longer walk. Also, he has trouble remembering things, he doesn’t really talk anymore, he smiles & laughs little, his eye sight is getting worse, and he is losing weight fast since he doesn’t eat or drink much. His grandkids typically bring him the most smiles & laughs and we’re grateful for that. We’re trying to soak in as many days left together as we possibly can. We enjoyed some time at our cabin recently, and that was such a gift. Thank you all for your prayers & support during our darkest time.

Venmo option: @karen-fautsch 

Meal Train link: https://mealtrain.com/e64zk2

June 24th:

On Thursday, June 19th, Mike was hospitalized because he’s experiencing memory loss, confusion, and other struggles. He had a lot of testing done that was normal, but his MRI revealed spots on his brain. He’s home now, but everything is bad and is getting worse extremely quickly and is becoming debilitating. 

From Karen: “Mike’s MRI, symptoms, and quickness of everything is all leading the neurologist to believe that he has a Prion disease known as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD). This diagnosis will be confirmed by the lumbar puncture fluid in about 2 weeks. There is no cure for CJD, and unfortunately it’s a fatal disease. And yes, it’s rare, about 1 in a million. I always knew he was ;)”

Speaking as his daughter, this timing seems especially heartbreaking and unfair. He was planning to retire in September and travel the U.S. with my mom, Karen, in their new truck & 5th-wheel set-up. With his inability to work and with my mom being his primary care provider, they have little income and a growing list of medical & care expenses. Any gift helps and is truly & deeply appreciated. We cannot thank you enough for your donations, prayers, and help.

Love,

Kelsey

This GoFundMe is to assist with medical bills and loss of income.