Hope for Alexa

This is my beautiful niece Alexa. Read her story below. If you can donate even $5 to her surgery expenses, it would be greatly appreciated.

For quite some time Alexa, has been experiencing severe stomach and abdominal pain. It has taken about 2 years, but we finally have a definitive diagnosis, learning in September that she has genetic pacreatitis, a very rare disease that is hard to diagnosis in large part because of its rarity. "Normal" tests for pancreatitis do not reveal the disease. With this diagnosis it has been recommended that she have a surgery called a Total Pancreatectomy with Autoislet Transplantation (TP-AIT). Essentially this surgery requires the total removal of her pancreas, separation of the insulin producing islets within the pancreas, and implanting these islets within the liver so that even though her pancreas will be removed (and with it her body's ability to produce digestive enzymes), she would still be able to produce insulin, saving her from the additional effects of diabetes. There are only a few places in the country that can perform this type of surgery.

For those that know Alexa you know that she absolutely loves music! She literally lives and breaths it! She has more music on her itunes than I ever thought possible. She has been almost completely home bound and most times even bed ridden for about a year and a half now, and music has been one of her best remedies for her pain- to help her keep her mind off of it a bit. Alexa has missed her entire junior year of high school and now half of her senior year. She is 18 years old and has never had the opportunity to go on a date or to a school dance or to do any of those things that high school girls love, and yet she remains close to the Lord and trusts that He is watching over her and everything will be alright someday. 

Donate below!

Hope For Alexa Donations

If you live in Utah, you can come to an amazing benefit concert in Alexa's behalf. See all the details on this flyer. Any donation amount will get you into the concert on April 17th at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi. You just need to write how many people are coming to the concert in the comments on your donation.