Help us fight for Aurora in 2016!

Josh

8 years ago

Josh Lawson climbing for Aurora Portland Stairclimb

Josh Lawson is trying to make “CF” stand for “Cure Found!” Visit Josh’s 8th Annual Portland Firefighter Stairclimb Challenge taking place on Sunday, September 25th 2016!

2016 CF Climb for Aurora Donation page

Thank you to all who donated in 2013, 2014 and 2015! You guys are absolutely amazing with hearts of gold! With your help over the years we’ve raised nearly $7000 to benefit CF and have been in the top 10 benefactors for both the 2014 and 2015 Portland Firefighter Stairclimbs. The CF Foundation raised $200,000 at the 2014 event alone!

2013: Completed the climb in 12:04, on almost 4500psi of air and we raised $1310 to benefit CF

2014: Completed the climb in 10:51, on 2750 psi of air and we raised $3700 to benefit CF

2015: Completed the climb in 11:28, and we raised $1905 to benefit CF

Look for the 2014 video to come!

Donor	Amount	Notes	Date
Jurrens Family Foundation	$1,000.00		Sep 26
Kristen Lawson	$25.00		Sep 22
Jamie Denley	$50.00		Sep 21
Jennifer Denley	$50.00		Sep 21
Coral Denley	$25.00	Thank you so much Josh!	Sep 21
Brad Lawson	$100.00		Sep 20
Terra McCracken	$50.00		Sep 19
Amy Thennes	$10.00		Sep 18
Lynn Stone	$25.00		Sep 18
Wayne Love	$500.00	Josh, thank you again for participating in the Portland Firefighters Stairclimb Challenge on behalf of our granddaughter Aurora.	Sep 18
Beth Card	$100.00	Gooooo Josh!!!	Sep 18
Andrea Hopkins	$25.00		Sep 17
Yohei Ota	$100.00		Sep 17
Jennifer Justman	$25.00	Thank you for doing this, Josh, I only wish we could donate more!	Sep 17
Imogene Trembowicz	$50.00		Sep 17
Heather Lethbridge	$50.00		Sep 17
Hazel Philbrook	$25.00	Thank you Josh	Sep 14
Linda Moczkowski	$100.00	We are so proud of what you are doing!	Sep 14
Susan Lawson	$50.00		Sep 13
LaDona May	$500.00	Thank you, Josh, from the bottom of my heart. Wayne is my brother, and since we lost a brother to this disease in the ’70s, this is very personal. Thank you for what you are doing not only for Rory but for everyone else who has cf. I really appreciate you and wish you all the best. La Dona May	Sep 13
Karen and Bob Moczkowski	$40.00		Sep 13
Kristen Lawson	$50.00	For Rory…	Sep 12
Joshua Love	$250.00	Akrebel69@hotmail.com	Sep 12
Marlene Love	$250.00	Josh thank you so much for sponsoring our Grandaughter again this year!	Sep 10
Sheila Goeth	$50.00	Keep the faith!	Sep 10
Jurrens Family Foundation	$100.00		Apr 23
Joshua and Jandi Love	$100.00		Jan 28

2014 CF Climb for Aurora Donation page

Our 2013 Firefighter Star Climb Video – Climbing for Aurora

The climb was difficult but we did make it to the 41st on one bottle of air in 12 minutes and 4 seconds. This was our baseline this next climb quickly approaching on September 21st 2014!Interesting facts about the video:

The iPhone you see mounted to my helmet is my heart rate. It was as high as 128 just standing in line due to the excitement ahead! At the end you’ll see 195!
At every turn they had photos of CF patients with words of encouragement – this really helped
The orange buckets on the landings are exactly what you probably think they are for!
When the video slows down the beeping sounds you’ll hear starting at floor 36 is my tank on reserve air, you’ll really start to see the struggle. If you listen closely a couple of flights later you’ll hear my vibe-alert which is my mask vibrating to let me know I’m almost out of air. The amazing thing about the struggle towards the end is the similarities of what it must feel like to be someone with CF and the struggles to breath. I can tell you, this is an emotional moment in the video for me and it really makes me realize how perfect this foundation and event are matched.

Thanks Again to all who donated in 2013: Sue Lawson, Brad Lawson, Sharon Worley, Kris Sal Dana, Joshua and Jandi Love, Washington Companies , Wayne and Marlene Love, Karen Moczkowski, Rachael Deach, Tanya Roust, Kellie Houston, Linda Franklin, Kim Devries, Caroline Haags, Nic Lawson, Kristen Lawson, Coral Denley, Hazel Philbrook, Phillene McNeill, Darlene Stone, Christina Blair, Leah LaBar, Joanie and Chris Vanderbeek/Moczkowski, Geneva Cantrell, Imogene Trembowicz, and Christy Bryan

Aurora’s story and more about Cystic Fibrosis

We have a very good friend who is an amazing mom and is raising a child with Cystic Fibrosis (CF). Josh, our lead inspector/owner of PDXinspections who is also a firefighter and will be climbing 40 floors of the US Bank Corp tower in Portland, OR on September 22nd, 2014 in full turnout gear while on air from a SCBA to help raise money for Cystic Fibrosis in Aurora’s name.

It’s been a long journey for Rory, and we can only hope the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation will give those with CF a fighting chance for as normal as possible life to come…Rory was diagnosed with a bowel obstruction in utero at 36 weeks. This was due to a blockage of meconium, the thick first stools of newborns. This required emergency bowel surgery at 4 hours of life. Rory lost 3/4 of her small bowel and had a jejunostomy until her second surgery at 8 weeks to reconnect her small intestine to her colon. It was when she was two weeks old that we received the news that her tests came back positive for CF. CF is a genetic disease that causes an abnormality of the chloride channels at a cellular level. It’s an autosomal recessive condition, meaning both parents have to be carriers of the gene. You have a 25% chance of having a child with CF, 50% chance a child that is a carrier, and 25% chance the child is neither.

What does all this mean for Rory then? Well, CF causes thick secretions, most notable in the lungs and pancreas. Extra thick mucous in the lungs is too difficult to clear, bacteria form and are difficult to eradicate with the assistance of antibiotics and daily nebulizer and chest physiotherapy treatments, designed to help break up mucous an assist in coughing it out of the lungs. The pancreas aids in digestion by releasing enzymes that breakdown fats in the foods we eat. Because the tubules in the pancreas are so small, and the enzymatic fluid is extra thick, little to no enzymes make to the small bowel. In order to digest fats, individuals with CF have to take enzymes by mouth with most foods they eat. Rory’s condition is a bit more complicated however. The portion of bowel she had removed includes the entire section that absorbs fats. The remaining 1/3 of her bowel has adapted some to take on the role of the missing sections, much like the brain learns to adapt after a stroke. Because of this and having CF, it is very difficult for her to grow and gain weight. She remains on a feeding tube at night and a strict diet. It’s a daily battle just to keep her healthy and growing. She has had many trips to and from home with help from the OHSU PANDA team.

Now we wait, hope, and pray for a cure. The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation is a donor driven, non-profit organization dedicated to attacking cystic fibrosis from every angle. They, through the generous donations, support the development of new drugs to fight the disease, improve the quality of life for those with CF, and ultimately to find a cure. They promote awareness and provide support for CF families. It is largely due to the efforts of this organization that many individuals with CF are now living well into 30’s, 40’s, and 50’s. They fund groundbreaking research in the areas of gene therapy, creating new drugs that will fight the disease at a cellular level and bringing us one step closer to a cure. The CFF is adding tomorrows every day. Thank you to all who have donated in 2013, it means the world to those who need it.

2014 CF Climb for Aurora Donation page