I will run the 2023 Honolulu Marathon in 4.5 days! This photo memory popped up today. I had posted it during President Bush’s funeral several years ago. Circa 1990(?) Travis was the poster child for Cystic Fibrosis. He had the privilege of meeting President Bush and taking a photo.🇺🇸 More info on what CF is can be found here: https://www.cff.org/intro-cf/about-cystic-fibrosis Please register to be an organ donor and donate the gift of life! https://liveonnebraska.org Please consider donating to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in memory of my brother, Travis. I am hoping to reach or exceed $5,000 by December 10. Any amount helps! ***Currently at $4,300!***

Life with CF involves the whole family. It became our normal. We all learned how to help care for Travis. My interest in healthcare started with Travis. I enjoyed getting to be a part of caring for him, learning how to help with IV medication setup/admin and NG placement, among many other daily tasks. Pre-transplant daily medications and treatments: -Pills with every snack and meal: pancreatic enzyme supplements. -Nebulizer treatments. -Percussion vest treatments 2-3x/day. -Oxygen: oxygen at night, then had to carry a pack and wear daily (think of how not nice kids can be to someone who is different & the toll it takes on the person). We took a giant oxygen tank on a camping trip once-CF didn’t stop him from living life. We even had the bazillion feet of tubing so he could run around the driveway to play basketball & be a normal kid. -Feeding tube at night to assist with nutrition and help gain weight. ***Funny story about Travis learning to insert his own NG tube. Our parents were out for the evening and Travis & I stayed home. I had learned how to insert the NG, set up the pump, and administer night feeds several months prior. I was attempting to insert the NG and Trav was being a punk. I told him I wasn’t gonna do it and he better figure it out before Mom & Dad got home or he would be in big trouble. He was forced to do the procedure himself and ultimately it was a way for him to have more responsibility.*** Post-transplant care was tough. Travis had quite a few set-backs over several months, but he rarely complained. Honestly, who would blame a kid for being mad this horrible disease chose him and wreaked havoc on his body? The medications he took changed his hair color, his general appearance, and exhausted his energy. Post-transplant care consisted of: -Anti-rejection medications -Steroids -Temporary tracheostomy My big brother was one tough dude! I will always be amazed at how brave he was to endure so much as a child. Those of us who are healthy often take the ease of our everyday lives for granted. Today, as I was looking through old photos I haven’t seen in quite some time, it really hit me. Any discomfort I go through seems so trivial in comparison to his. How scary to experience all of this as a kid.

Today is Giving Tuesday! Please consider donating to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in honor of my brother, Travis! Here’s a sweet story about how Cystic Fibrosis is also known as 65 Roses. “Mary G. Weiss became a volunteer for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in 1965 after learning that her three little boys had CF. Her duty was to call every civic club, social, and service organization, seeking financial support for CF research. Mary's 4-year-old son, Richard (Ricky), listened closely to his mother as she made each call. After several calls, Richard came into the room and told his mom, "I know what you are working for." Mary was dumbstruck because Richard did not know what she was doing, nor did he know that he had cystic fibrosis. With some trepidation, Mary asked, "What am I working for, Ricky?" He answered, "You are working for 65 Roses." Mary was speechless. He could not see the tears running down Mary's cheeks as she stammered, "Yes, Ricky, I'm working for 65 Roses."” More info on what CF is can be found here: https://www.cff.org/intro-cf/about-cystic-fibrosis Please register to be an organ donor and donate the gift of life! https://liveonnebraska.org Please consider donating to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in memory of my brother, Travis. I am hoping to reach or exceed $5,000 by December 10. Any amount helps!

Here’s a cool story about Tom Osborne. Prior to my parents and brother moving to St. Louis, MO to undergo testing for a live donor lung transplant, my brother was fortunate to receive a wish from the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Nebraska. Only he didn’t know anything about it. That day, Travis was in the hospital and I was in school. My parents got me out of school early, but wouldn’t tell me what was happening. I thought maybe the pager had gone off for a cadaver donor. We went to the hospital and I was sitting in the hallway outside of Travis’ room. I looked to the left and saw Tom Osborne walking down the hall! He was headed to see Travis for a meet and greet & sign a bunch of Husker football memorabilia. Travis could not believe his favorite coach was in his room visiting with him! Coach Osborne was very kind and lived up to all of the great stories you’ve heard about him. They talked about their love of fishing and planned to fish after Travis’ transplant and recovery. Unfortunately, Travis never got his excursion with Coach Osborne. After Travis’ death, we held yearly fishing tournaments to raise money for CF research and Coach Osborne was an honorary chairman for the event, attending the for the first few years as his schedule allowed. I will always be grateful he took time from his busy schedule to make Travis’ day! You can help change a CF patient’s life by making a donation towards research. You’re helping someone live a longer life and they just might get to go on a dream fishing trip! More info on what CF is can be found here: https://www.cff.org/intro-cf/about-cystic-fibrosis Please register to be an organ donor and donate the gift of life! https://liveonnebraska.org Please consider donating to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in memory of my brother, Travis. I am hoping to reach or exceed $5,000 by December 10. Any amount helps!

October 19, 1998-The day Travis had a double-lung transplant at St. Louis Childrens Hospital. My dad and aunt (dad’s sister) each donated a lobe of their lung to Travis, with the hope of extending his life. Cystic fibrosis patients can lead fairly normal lives post transplant. Although the lungs won’t have CF or develop it, the rest of the patient’s body has CF and still needs some CF treatment. Cystic fibrosis is a progressive, genetic disease that affects the lungs, pancreas, and other organs. There are close to 40,000 children and adults living with cystic fibrosis in the United States (and an estimated 105,000 people have been diagnosed with CF across 94 countries), and CF can affect people of every racial and ethnic group. More info on what CF is can be found here: https://www.cff.org/intro-cf/about-cystic-fibrosis Please register to be an organ donor and donate the gift of life! https://liveonnebraska.org Please consider donating to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in memory of my brother, Travis. I am hoping to reach or exceed $5,000 by December 10. Any amount helps!

Today is a long run day-16 miles! That’s nearly as many years as Travis was alive. Travis turned 17 four days prior to passing. Travis was diagnosed with CF at 3 months. His doctors didn’t expect him to live past 8 years. There have been several advances in medications and treatments over the last 24 years and today the life span for people with CF is approximately 50. Your donation funds CF research to help patients live longer, fulfilling lives. Please consider donating to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in memory of my brother, Travis. I am hoping to reach or exceed $5,000 by December 10. Any amount helps!

Honolulu Marathon 2023

I am 60 days out from running the 2023 Honolulu Marathon! A couple months ago, I saw a friend post about training for a marathon and I was intrigued. Several years ago, I thought it would be cool to run a marathon. The past few years, I’ve participated in a variety of runs and decided any chance of a marathon had sailed. I had just finished my first triathlon when I saw her post. I looked into the run some more and decided it was a great reason for another challenge, a vacation, and most importantly, a great way to raise money for a cause that has been a huge part of my life. My family, CFF Nebraska, and the Nebraska Bass Federation held a fishing tournament for several years in honor of my brother, Travis, who suffered from and ultimately succumbed to cystic fibrosis. Once covid hit, it put a halt to the tournament for the past few years. Ultimately, that meant fundraising would be different as a result. My family has continued to be involved in cystic fibrosis events after Travis’ passing because we want to help improve the lives of CF patients and their families so they don’t have to experience the pain of a young life taken too soon. Please consider donating to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in memory of my brother, Travis.