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Look, I know we all get busy. But I think it’s important to emphasize that in a time of chaos, be it stranger or friend, it’s important for us to let each other know how we are doing, as we may find there’s something we each have for each other to help us get through these times. So please, if you feel compelled, let me know.
This email is urgent on three fronts - so much so, now that I’ve healed from being sick for the last three months, we need to catch up.
My brother Salim, as you know, has been living with Stage 4 liver cirrhosis for over 2 1/2 years. His MELD score has gone up. This, in the simplest of terms, means he’s closer to death than he has ever been. And now, it looks like a friend of his, Fareed, is in a similar situation & may only have weeks to live.
Fareed’s wife, Jenn & I happen to work in similar circles, so it’s great that we’ve found each other. We’re going to work together to see if we find them both a living liver donor before it’s too late.
Financially, we’ve taken a hit. We were hoping we had found a living donor for Salim (& our candidate was exceptional through the entire process) But it turned out, their liver would have been too small to have a portion of it donated, without causing risk to them. I’m grateful to them for giving us hope & glad the hospital treated them so very well throughout the entire process.
I’m able to work again but Salim’s bills are way behind & that’s created a domino effect back to the entire family. So we need to keep raising money for his food, rent & medication.
But more, we need time. I need to be able to spend whatever time is necessary to find every possible candidate that can be a living donor to Salim or Fareed.
This needs to be my job right now. I know I’m asking a lot, but I couldn’t live with myself knowing I had to take time away from saving him.
So I need a leap of faith from you. If you know me, you know that I will always find a way to help others when people lift me up. I need you to help me do that, so we can save not only their lives, but find living donors for others, because this work won’t stop to help others find living organ donor matches.
You can contribute to the fundraiser here: https://www.viciousminuteshour.com/savesalim
More, if you are interested in being tested to being a potential living liver donor to either individual, please email me back at rahim@viciousminuteshour.com and I’ll get you started on the process right away. You can be anywhere on this planet and there are government/hospital programs in place to accomodate you to travel and stay here for testing.
And if you know of any place or platform you have that can share their stories, a share doesn’t cost a single cent - please let me know & I’ll get you all the details I can for you to share.
I’m very aware I make a lot of asks on his behalf, but he’s my brother - I’m not really interested in pride, except for the fact that I’m proud of him for hanging on this long.
Pitch in what you can and let’s save Salim & Fareed’s lives & make sure this isn’t their last Spring.
Cheers,