Supper, silent auction to benefit
local heart transplant recipien
By Scott Mitchell Johnson
Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE — Staff and students are teaming up to help raise funds for Patrick Michaud, a freshman at Presque Isle High School, who underwent a second heart transplant Dec. 27, 2012.
A benefit dinner and silent auction will be held Friday night and proceeds will assist the family with medical bills and related expenses.
“Even with insurance, things add up,” said Patrick’s father, Mike Michaud. “He has a lot of repeat visits that never really end for a transplant patient.
“Even though Patrick’s doing well today and is stationed back at home, we still have a lot of repeat trips to Boston. Sometimes we’re able to use Angel Flight, but a lot of times we drive and stay in hotels, so between that, meals and parking, it can get expensive,” he said. “Right now Patrick has appointments in Boston every three weeks so there’s a lot of travel involved.”
Patrick was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, a disease that weakens and enlarges the heart muscle, when he was an infant.
“Patrick was able to maintain with medication until he was 3 and then he had the first transplant in 2001,” said Michaud. “He did pretty well with that; but eventually had some rejection that damaged the second heart. Once again that left him with a dehabilitated heart, and with medication and some other things they were able to buy three or four years, but essentially the heart failed to the point where it needed to be replaced again.
“Things are going well. One of the things they do to assure there’s no rejection going on is a cardiac biopsy which is done through a cardiac heart catheterization, so the first three months since his second transplant he’s been on an every-three-weeks schedule,” Michaud said. “He has one during April vacation, and then that’s going to be spread out a little bit. So far he’s been rejection free since the new heart.”
While he may have some physical limitations, Patrick, who turned 15 Monday, enjoys hunting, fishing and shooting.
The benefit dinner will be held Friday, April 12 at 5 p.m. at the Aroostook Shrine Club located on the Houlton Road. The meal will consist of spaghetti and meatballs and beans and franks. There is a suggested donation of $5. Bidding for the silent auction will end at 8 p.m.
To contribute an auction item or to make a monetary donation, e-mail Kimberly Hall or Laura Roope at haveaheart0412@yahoo.com.
“It means a lot to us that people at the school are organizing this fundraiser. While some of the adults are organizing it, the fact that the kids want to work on it and do something is nice to see,” said Michaud. “We all have our days when we say, ‘Why am I living here when it’s 30 below?’ or ‘It’s April and it’s still cold’ … but these are the types of reasons why … because of the sense of community that we have here.
“We’ve been through a lot with Patrick since he was born, but we’ve always had a lot of support. It’s not just the financial aspect; it’s as much about the good thoughts, prayers and well wishes,” he said. “The community in northern Maine is what this place is really all about. You can take the sunshine, the beaches and all the city life, but you’re not going to get this kind of kindness. It’s really important and means a lot to our family.”
