Restoring Hope
A Celebration of Thanksgiving - November 2017
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY GARY & PEGGY: CELEBRATING AT RHTH
A Lifetime Of Memories Together
Our friend Gary (Kenosha, WI) first checked in to Restoring Hope Transplant House on September 13th to help care for this wife Peggy who has been receiving bone marrow treatments and care at nearby UW Hospital during that time. 
 
Peggy has been in and out of the hospital during her treatments and we are so thrilled for our dear friends that they are both here at RHTH now...just in time to celebrate their 49th wedding anniversary today.
   
Happy Anniversary Gary and Peggy from all who have had the pleasure to share this home with you over the past couple months.  We look forward to sharing this special day with you both here at Restoring Hope!
MIRACLE MAN: UW'S FIRST HEART & LIVER RECIPIENT AT RHTH
Our RHTH Family: Meet Ben and Liz
On June 23rd 2017, my husband Ben received the first simultaneous heart and liver transplant UW Hospital has done. He recovered quickly and was able to go home to LaCrosse after 13 days. We were able to be home for 1 ½ weeks before he was admitted to the hospital due to moderate liver rejection. The rejection was treated quickly, but the doctors were having trouble maintaining a therapeutic level of anti-rejection medicine in his system. Ben was in the hospital for 70 days one stint and nearly 3 weeks during another while the medical team found the right combination of medicines to keep his levels stable. We were hoping to go home so we could be close to friends and family, but we were asked to stay in Madison so the doctors could closely monitor Ben's blood work.
 
When we arrived at the Restoring Hope Transplant House, Eric greeted us with a warm smile and a hug and made us feel right at home. Rather than walking into a drab hotel, we were in a beautifully decorated home. It was like visiting the home of a beloved family member. Being able to sleep in a real bed and waking up to the smell of Cindy cooking breakfast was rejuvenating. The conversations with Cindy and the other guests helped us feel like we weren't going through this journey alone. The witty banter with Eric each evening helped us remember you can have fun even while recovering. The ability to cook dinner after eating cafeteria food for so many days was amazing!
 
Ben and I are so lucky to have had the opportunity to stay at RHTH and have the support from Cindy and Eric to go home. It is comforting to know they are here for us when we need to come back. We love RHTH!
 
Ben & Liz
Heart and Liver Transplant Recipient
Onalaska, WI
TRANSPLANT GUESTS MEET THEIR DONOR FAMILY AT RHTH
Giving Thanks In Person For The Gift Of Life
In the winter of 2015 we welcomed a transplant family from Viroqua to Restoring Hope Transplant House as they were caring for their son. In October of 2017 we finally got to meet Layne (liver transplant recipient from Green Bay) and welcome his family back to Restoring Hope to meet their liver donor family from Pekin, Illinois for the very first time. What an incredible moment to share with two wonderful families as they united around our dining room table to share stories of their emotional journeys and to learn how the tragic loss of a husband and father gave miraculous life to a married father of two young boys who now get to grow up with the love of a healthy father. Your continued support for Restoring Hope Transplant House helps to give the gift of home to so many incredible people in the transplant community like Layne and his family in their time of need.
24 Year Heart Checkup For Our VA Guest
As many of you know, Restoring Hope Transplant House started working with the William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital this year to welcome VA transplant families who also have their transplants performed at UW Hospital.

This past week we were honored to welcome a Veteran from Northern Illinois in for his annual checkup for a heart transplant he had an incredible 24 years ago.  Simply amazing...thanks for your service and for being such an inspiration to all of us in the transplant community!




A Warm Meal During A Frigid Wisconsin Winter
Donna Frett of McHenry, Illinois received a life-saving liver transplant in the summer of 2005.  Her gift of life came from a young 23 year old man named Dustin Rozmenoski from Black River Falls who passed away in an accident.  Donna's family and the Rozmenoski's have been big supporters of the transplant community and RHTH over the years so it was really no surprise to see Donna stop by last week with her friend Judy and several large bags full of groceries to help ensure that none of our visiting families would be without a warm meal this chilly winter.  We are so grateful to those ladies and for all of you who have had a hand in making RHTH such a special place!
RHTH Guest Thankful For A Second Chance!
Our good friend Ray was recently in town for his annual liver transplant check-up.  It's so incredible to see his life-changing tranformation since we first welcomed him and his mom to RHTH in 2015.  If you find yourself struggling physically or mentally with various challenges through life, we hope you will be inspired by Ray's incredible journey.  You can do this!

THANKFUL FOR NEW ADDITIONS TO THE FAMILY



Busy Fall On The Family Front
Executive Director and Co-Founder Cindy Herbst was overjoyed to both welcome a 5th grandchild into the world and a new son-in-law this fall.  What a blessing they have been in our lives.  We appreciate so many of your kind words and well wishes during this exciting time.  In a season of giving thanks, we truly do have so much to be thankful for!

with thanks to Chelsie at Lettering Works an RHTH transplant family guest


Where There's A Need, There's A Lion!
The statewide Lions, Lioness and Leos Clubs of Wisconsin are once again offering their support for the Restoring Hope Transplant House expansion and renovation fund efforts this year as well as our day to day operations.  Executive Director Cindy Herbst has already begun touring the state again meeting with various Clubs all across Wisconsin with the help of Lions Club friends and even our own guests like Karen (pictured at right) who volunteered to speak about her experiences at RHTH during a recent gathering near her home in the Wausau area.

 
We are beyond grateful for these Clubs continued support of the transplant community and Restoring Hope Transplant House and so blessed that they all recognize that while RHTH may be located hundreds of miles from their hometowns, that we offer a compassionate home away from home for so many of their neighbors.  Thank you all, we hope to see and thank many of you in person during our travels this winter!
 
We would also like to extend our thoughts and best wishes to the family and friends of former Lions Club International Director Karla Harris who recently passed away.  She was an incredible leader in the Lions Club community in this state and beyond and such a big supporter of Restoring Hope Transplant House.  Karla was dearly loved and cherished by anyone she crossed paths with.  We will always appreciate the loyal support Karla and her husband Clarence have had for Restoring Hope and so many other community-minded causes that were dear to her heart.  Thanks for everything Karla - you will be missed but your legacy shines on in all of your good deeds!
RECENT FUNDRAISERS & DONATIONS




Your Efforts Are Making A Difference!
As a non-profit cause, fundraisers and donations are so crucial to our success.  Those funds generated and contributions of daily houshold items and supplies truly help to offset so many of our regular operating expenses so that we can continue to provide a comfortable and affordable home away from home to transplant families. 

There are so many people to thank on this front.  These pictured are a sampling of the tremendous families, clubs and groups who collectively help to keep our doors open.  We could not do this without your continued support so please know how much we appreciate you!
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You Can Help - ThanksGIVING!

If this cause and the above faces, families and stories inspire and move you, we hope that you would please consider making a holiday donation to Restoring Hope Transplant House.  Your generosity during these crucial holiday months of giving are so vitally important  as a non-profit that depends almost entirely upon financial contributions from supporters like you. 

Please help support the transplant community by making a secure online donation to Restoring Hope Transplant House via PayPal today!

We are also actively searching for major donors to help with our joint efforts with the Lions Clubs of Wisconsin and others to help push us over the top for our extensive plans to renovate and add on to the current house as well as monthly donors and fundraisers to help with operating expenses.  This will ensure that Restoring Hope Transplant House becomes a longtime fixture in both downtown Middleton and in the transplant community.  If you have any suggestions, connections or interest please contact Executive Director Cindy Herbst at 608-831-1726 or via email at [email protected].  Please help!
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In The News
November is National Diabetes Awareness Month.  Nearly half of all Americans have diabetes or prediabetes.  Click here to learn more!





Final Thought
It always means so much to us when our guests stop by to visit and catch up whenever they are in town.  The last we saw the Page family (South Beloit, IL) they were up in one of the hospital lounges playing beautiful music together all while Mr. Page was receiving treatments for the very same form of cancer that directly impacted a loved one in our own family many years ago.  It was so good to see them again more than a year later and to know that this house still remains in their thoughts well after they have returned home.  Thanks for the visit and the tasty pie friends.  Moments like this truly inspire us as the many special people who have lived within these walls have helped to make this house a home!  We really do have so much to be thankful for!
About Restoring Hope Transplant House - Contact Cindy
Cindy and supporter Bob speaking about RHTH at a recent Lions Club gathering

Restoring Hope Transplant House is a non-profit home established to serve organ and bone marrow transplant patients and their families. The home features six generously-sized guest rooms, multiple sitting rooms, full kitchen, laundry, cable tv, wi-fi and a tranquil yet convenient location in downtown Middleton, just five miles from UW Hospital.

If you have any questions about RHTH, please contact Cindy to learn more.  

Restoring Hope Transplant House
7457 Terrace Avenue
Middleton, WI 53562
608-628-8882
[email protected]
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Restoring Hope Transplant House

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