After a year of battle, on October 11, 2007, Shellyan peacefully passed away holding her parents hands and listening to family home videos. Being selfless to the end, she decided that she was going to donate her lungs to science, in the hope of increasing the quality of life for other transplant patients.
Shelly always said she was placed on this earth for a reason. In the past year, she concluded her reason was to touch the lives of others and to inspire them to live life to the fullest. All who have meet Shelly know how successful she was at leaving a lasting impression. She could light up the darkest room, cheer up any one with her smile, and offer a shoulder to cry on no matter what was happening in her own life. Shelly was a great friend, a loving daughter, a caring aunt, and a wonderful sister.
The Pearson-Schaefer family would like to thank all of you for your support over the past year. Your emails, cards, and gifts always placed a smile on Shelly’s face and warmed her heart.
“You can shed tears that she is gone,
or you can smile because she has lived.
You can close your eyes and pray that she'll come back,
or you can open your eyes and see all she's left.
Your heart can be empty because you can't see her,
or you can be full of the love you shared.
You can turn your back on tomorrow and live for yesterday,
or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday.
You can remember her and only that she's gone
or you can cherish her memory and let it live on.
You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back
or you can do what she'd want:
smile, open your eyes, love and go on.â€
-David Harkins
http://www.helpshellyan.com
I WILL NEVER GIVE UP!! I thought I would write a little story and give an update about my health and life. My close friends already know, but for those who don’t….. Well, here it is…… 18 years ago I was diagnosed with a very rare disease, hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia.My condition was severe and specifically affected my lungs. The only chance for life was to undergo a double lung transplant. On Jan 9, 1989 at Children’s hospital in Pittsburgh (there were only a handful of hospitals at the time that performed transplants.) I underwent the surgery. I was, in fact, the first child to have a bi-lateral lung transplant in the nation.The surgery was a blessing to me and my family it gave me a second chance at life. The last 18 years I truly have lived each and every minute of every day to the fullest. I love my life and stride to accomplish all my dreams and goals. I graduated from Shoreline Community College as a dental hygienist in June 2005. One of my passions is traveling, I was fortunate enough (several years ago) to get to visit my sister who was stationed in Germany. I’ve become more spiritual and spend as much time talking and supporting others who need or who have had transplants. My new goal is to train to run half a marathon.Unfortunately, I have had to put my life on hold these last seven months. In October, I had a cyst removed from my nose; sadly, my health has downward spiraled ever since. Shortly after the surgery I became ill with shingles, which literally was hell; that honestly was the most pain I have ever experienced. I lost half of my hair on the right side, and now have permanent paresthesia (numbing) down the right side of my neck. While I was in the hospital for shingles under a PC morphine pump, I got a horrible dental abscess; the infection went into my throat. The official diagnosis was cellulites; I needed antibiotics immediately. I was finally on the road to recovery, (or so I thought) when I was taken to the ER for difficulty breathing and was hospitalized for pneumonia. After I thought I was in the clear, in February, I was re-hospitalized for internal bleeding, which required me to undergo another surgery, I also had to have a blood transfusion. By the end of February, I was again diagnosed with phenomena.Currently, I am very ill with a pulmonary condition, I have had multiple chest x-rays, CT scans, PFT’s, lung biopsies, and several visits to the emergency room. Unfortunately, the Drs have not been unable to come up with a definite diagnosis. My pulmonary function test continues to decline dramatically. In August of last year my lungs worked at 89 percent, today they are only functioning at 47 percent. The second week in May I will be undergoing an open lung biopsy, I will be hospitalized for 5-7 days.I’ve missed so many days of work in these last seven months, thus making it next to impossible to keep up with my medical bills. Post transplant costs are outrageous. Medications a month average 1,200-2,000. I’m very grateful because my job does offer medical insurance, however even with coverage; I am still struggling with making ends meet. I often cry with frustration when collection agencies call me reminding me of my outstanding unpaid balance. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I do not lose my job.I came home today and allowed five minutes of crying and feeling sorry for my situation. Then looked in the mirror and reminded myself how much I love my life and all the dreams I have yet accomplished. My mom always says... “This is your deck of cards Shell; you have to just go with it...†“You are going through all of this for a reason.†I know God doesn’t give me anything I can’t handle and I am motivated to stay strong and over come my sickness. With all my heart and soul I believe in the power of the mind and its capability to heal. I intend to excel and get back on my feet. I have faith in God, and also trust science. To me, hard times only make us stronger and make us appreciate life that much more.
