My name is Amanda, niece of Jim and Julie. On July 17th, Jim was at home doing his normal routine when he all of a sudden developed neck pain, shortly there after while Julie went to get him an ice pack, within minutes found him on the couch unable to move or speak! 911 was called and he was brought to Melrose Emergency Department, where he was suspected to have a possible stroke. He was treated for this, however his symptoms were very atypical. He was transferred to St. Cloud Hospital to the ICU. The doctor’s have questioned what was wrong with him, as this was an unusual presentation. They were concerned for a possible stroke, infectious disease, and the unknown of an encephalitis of some sort which can occur from insect bites or other things! The testing began and Jim’s condition continued to deteriorate. He went from being able to nod yes or no to questions, pointing at objects with his left hand to nothing! His breathing became labored and was intubated. He went through numerous CT scans and there were no signs of a stroke or brain bleed! Everything was still up in the air with many questions to be answered. During this time, he underwent an exploratory angiogram, in hopes to have a thrombectomy, to analyze his arteries of the brain. They did not find any clots! Early Tuesday morning, he had an MRI, which showed a bilateral pontine infarction, which is a stroke of the brainstem. This is the pathway from the brain to the body. This means his whole body from movement to speech to breathing is affected. The doctor’s said it was likely Jim may never wake up again! Oh but our stubborn, resilient Jim did! He opened his eyes! He is now able to communicate with us through the blinking of his eyes. 2 for yes and a slow 1 for no. However, the prognosis is still poor! It is a less than one percent chance he will ever be able to come home or recover! His mind is there, but his bodily functions even breathing on his own will likely never return! This great, funny, sarcastic, outgoing, loving man who will give the shirt off his back for anyone is currently suffering from what they called “locked in syndrome” where your mind is functioning, but the body does not. While we are uncertain of what Jim’s future holds, his family including his wife Julie, and his two young boys, Austin and Logan, brothers, sisters, friends, nieces, and nephews, are of course praying for a miracle! Jim is of course unable to work, as is his wife Julie, because she is his voice and needs to be by his side! We are asking for any sort of donation to help support them in their time of need that is likely to be a very long, if not life long journey at this time! All donations will go to support Jim’s medical expenses and to help Julie and the boys at home with bills. We thank you for your thoughts, prayers, and any help you can provide during this tragic time of need! If you wish to make a private donation, please message me. Update: People have been asking for an update, things are currently at a stand still, there have been many family conversations with Jim and Julie, again his prognosis is poor with never being able to live off of life support for a long duration, we will continue to update you when things have changed! We thank you for your continued support and prayers through this difficult time and appreciate anything you can give to help Julie, Jim, and the boys (Austin and Logan) through donation, meals, prayers, or just support in general! Update: Our beloved Jim passed away peacefully last night 7/28/2024 at 9:05pm. Jim was known for his sense of humor and quick wit. He was always making people laugh and would light up the room. He was always tinkering, busy, and outgoing! You could always call on Jim and he would give you the shirt off of his back! We will never be able to fill his absence, but with the support of others it can ease the pain and provide assistance on the journey ahead with out Jim here with us on earth. Please say a prayer as we lift him up to heaven to be with his parents and brother Dale. We know those two are definitely going to give heaven some hell, with Jim’s crazy one-liners and ripping it up with some classic cars! Please continue to support his family through this difficult time as the expenses and hardships continue to add up. We know god took a great man, husband, father, brother, uncle, and friend way too soon, and many will be grieving the loss of Jim, so any type of support is very much needed and appreciated! On behalf of Jim and his family, I know they thank you all from the bottom of their hearts!
Artículos relacionados
