TONY IS HOME!! 6/30/09: Robyn and Tony drove from Pittsburgh and are safe and sound back home! They got "the call" about a liver Saturday afternoon and headed to Pittsburgh! The liver got to the hospital Sunday morning and the transplant was to begin. Will keep posting updates!! Keep your fingers crossed!!!! 5/17/09: There was an article in the Charleston paper this morning on Tony - copy and paste the address: http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2009/may/17/long_road_home_after_transplant82546/ 5/8/09: This past week was pretty eventful. Tony is off the vent and doing well. He was weaned off some of the pain meds, which was not easy, but he made it through! The doctors are pleased with his progress so far. Robyn has access to a computer again - so be sure to check the journal for more updates. 4/30/09: Tony went through surgery this morning to close up the incision site from the transplant. They were unable to pull his ab muscles tight enough, so just pulled the skin over and closed him up. May be able to go back in the future and reconnect muscles, but wanted to get him closed to start weaning him off the vent. 4/28/09: Tony is doing good - progressing each day. Plan to do surgery to close his stomach on Thursday 4/29. If all goes well, will move him to the brand new Children's Hospital on Saturday! Robyn hopes to have computer access in the next few days, so will be able to post in the journal and reply to notes in the guestbook. Please keep Tony in your thoughts and take a moment to write in the guestbook - Tony enjoys hearing from everyone!! 4/26/09 2:00pm: Surgery is finished - Tony is stable, he will be kept asleep and on ventilator until Thursday. The original goal was $100,000 - and we met that in less than a year!!! Donations are still being accepted - click the "donate" tab today to help!!! WORDS CANNOT EXPRESS THE GRATITUDE FELT BY THE FAMILY AND FRIENDS OF TONY FOR ALL THE SUPPORT OVER THE PAST YEAR!! MEET TONY: Tony Pasquino was born January 28, 1992, in Charleston, SC. He was 7 weeks early and weighed 4 ½ pounds and by the end of his first week he weighed only 2 pounds. At 3 months old, Tony was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis (www.cff.org), a progressive lung and digestive disease. Tony’s first 12 years were pretty smooth – no hospitalizations, minor surgeries and daily routine of vitamins and enzymes to help Tony’s digestive system work properly in addition to twice-a-day breathing treatments. Tony was diagnosed with liver disease on January 18, 2004. We took Tony on March 3, 2008 to the Pittsburgh Children's Hospital where he was placed on the liver transplant list on March 12, 2008. We are asking you to help Tony receive a new liver to give him a better quality of life, to feel well and to live without so much pain. Tony has the strength to endure his intense medical treatments with an ease that few others could or would tolerate. He gives us strength to travel with him on this roller coaster ride of Cystic Fibrosis and Liver Disease. With the cost of a transplant often exceeding $500,000, many transplant patients are unable to shoulder the financial burden of such a procedure. The Children's Organ Transplant Association (COTA) is a national charity dedicated to organizing and guiding communities in raising funds for transplant-needy patients. In Summerville, volunteers are raising funds for transplant patients like local teen Tony Pasquino. The doctors at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, recommended a life-saving liver transplant. An estimated $100,000 is being raised by Summerville volunteers (“Team Tony”). THANK YOU TO ALL WHO CAME OUT FOR THE HALLOWEEN PAW-RADE - IT WAS A LOT OF FUN!! OVER $400 RAISED FOR TONY!!! CHECK BACK FOR PICS OF THE GREAT DOG COSTUMES!! SPECIAL THANKS GO OUT TO: ALBERTA SEREIKA LYNDA HIGGINS HELEN SMITH BARBARA PASQUINO MARGE IRIZARY DENISE SAHLMANN ANGELA PASQUINO (AND HER FRIEND ZORA) STEPHANIE AND TONY PASQUINO AND NONE OF IT WOULD HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT: MARY ANN RIDENOUR ROBYN PASQUINO MR. BILL TEAM TONY WOULD LIKE TO SEND A VERY SPECIAL THANK YOU TO BOB AND FIONA GRYGIEL AND FAMILY FOR THEIR GENEROUS DONATION OF OVER $7,500.00 TO TONY'S CAMPAIGN. BOB AND FIONA ORGANIZE A GOLF AND TENNIS TOURNAMENT EACH YEAR IN HONOR OF THEIR DAUGHTER, LAURA, WHO WAS AN ORGAN DONOR HERSELF WHEN SHE PASSED AWAY AT THE YOUNG AGE OF 16. THIS YEAR, BOB AND FIONA CHOSE TO DONATE THE PROCEEDS OF THE TOURNAMENT (HELD OCT. 20 IN HILTON HEAD) TO TONY! AGAIN, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR KINDNESS AND GENEROSITY!!! "Collecting for the Cause" You can donate old cell phones and printer cartridges at Inland Surf and Skate on Trolley Rd. Check back for more drop-off locations! LIKE SURFING THE WEB? RAISE MONEY FOR TONY USING GOODSEARCH.COM (POWERED BY YAHOO): GO TO http://www.goodsearch.com/ , TYPE IN COTA UNDER "WHO DO YOU GOODSEARCH FOR?" - SCROLL DOWN TO TONY'S NAME. EACH SEARCH ADDS MONEY TO TONY'S ACCOUNT! It's easy to make a donation to help Tony!!! 1. Online - click the "Donate" tab above 2. At any Wachovia bank - account # 3000025117580 *****CHECK OUT "TONY'S HEROES" - CLICK LINK BELOW! ***** Thank you for helping us reach our goal!
MORE PICS FROM THE HILTON HEAD EVENT:
Joe Ridenour (7th grader at Summerville Catholic School) and Taylor Dojan (9th grader at Ashley Ridge HS) - friends of Tony - shown with old cell phones and printer cartridges they have collected to raise money for Tony!
Want to get involved with Tony's Campaign? Check out the "Activities" and "Volunteers" tabs above to find out how!
| HERE ARE SOME PICS FROM VARIOUS EVENTS THAT HAVE TAKEN PLACE TO HELP TONY! IF YOU HAVE ANY PICS TO SHARE, PLEASE EMAIL TO HEATHER WAYNE: HWAYNE1@HOTMAIL.COM |
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| Tony surrounded by the "Skate Tony" crew |
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Tony drawing the winning ticket for the Springsteen concert |
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Tony and Daniel Dickerson (manager of Chick-fil-A) at Spirit Night |
Tony blowing the starting horn for the Wescott 5K |
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Tony and the No Limit Riders - they took Tony on his first ever motorcycle ride! (Spirit night at Chick-fil-A) |
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Mary Ann Ridenour and Stef (Tony's sis) at the Mad Hatters Tea Party and Chinese Auction |
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Don't Forget To Sign My Guestbook! |
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| Mary Ann Ridenour, Tony, and Heather Wayne |
