About Kirby
Kirby is a 21 year old resident of Convent La. She was Diagnosed with AML Leukemia in October of 2004, the same month as Riki. At the time of her illness, she was attending University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Riki and Kirby became fast friends as they shared lots of common ground.
Updates
February 26, 2008:
Well, Kirby's guestbook has been maxed out on the number of entries it
will hold. I've just added a new one,
but don't worry....the old one is still available for viewing
January 24, 2006:
Just wanted to let you all know that
Tulane found Kirbys suitcase and laptop. They have mailed it to Donald
(Kirby's dad). He has since given me the laptop to
"hack" into and save all of her data....I have done that.
I have also sorted thru over 250 emails she had as well.
I want to thank all of you who sent her encouraging emails and ecards....I
was able to see all of those who cared for her
in her overloaded inbox.
This is very bittersweet for her family to regain possession of Kirbys
things and a little insite to her life in her computer files.
She also had lots of pics of her freinds and pets on it. I saved everything
for the family.
Thanks Again,
Buddy Legnon
October 4, 2005:
There was an article written about Kirby in The Vermillion Online.
October 3, 2005:
I've added another 25 or so of my own pictures and pictures Erin sent me of Kirby. Make sure to check those out.
October 2, 2005:
I have added about 25 new pictures of Kirby to her image gallery. Thank you to Megan for getting all of those to me.
September 19, 2005:
New pictures of Kirby have been added. Thank you to Erin for sending me some of them. If anyone else has any pics, pleased send them to me so I can add them as well.
September 8, 2005:
Please visit the Notice for Mary Kirby Lea "Kirby" Hawthorne.
Kirby's Obituary
September 7, 2005:
Directions:
From Interstate 10 East, like going to New Orleans, Go to the Gonzales Hwy
44 exit. Take a right on Hwy 44 and keep on going.You will see the Levee
for the Mississippi River after you cross the rail road track. The Road
tee's to left and right. Go Left, keep following the River road and keep on
driving for a few miles. You will pass under the Sunshine Bridge. Just keep
going about 5 to 6 miles to St Michael's Church, it will be on the left.
You can't get lost once you are on the river road. Just keep heading south
you till see the church. Its an old brick church with a sign on the levee
side. If you should get stopped by the St James Sheriff Dept. tell them
where you are going & why, and tell them my name and my radio number 605.
Thanks and see you there.(Donald)
September 6, 2005:
Funeral Arrangements:
Saturday, September 10th, 2005
Located at St. Michael's Church in Convent, La.
Visitation from 9am till 11am at the church.
Mass begins at 11am, burial to follow at St. Mary's Church in Convent.
Map to St. Michael's
September 4, 2005:
Today at approximately 8:30am, Kirby was called home to our Lord. She had fought bravely during her 11 month fight with AML Leukemia.
The poweroutage during the hurricane and the subsequent days following without power gave opportunity for her condition to deteriorate.
In Lieu of flowers, please make a financial contribution to Kirby's benefit fund to help with funeral expenses.
Contributions can be made at any Hibernia bank branch under the name Mary Kirby Hawthorne.
Funeral arrangements will be forthcoming
Please pray for Kirby's family during this difficult time.
Thanks to you all for your continued
support and prayers.
Buddy Legnon
At approximately 8:30 this morning, Kirby passed away. She fought long and hard for 11 months, but it just became too much for. The only consolation I can give right now is the fact that she is no longer suffering. I know that she's looking down from heaven and smiling on us, and she can see just how loved she is. I feel priveleged to have been able to call her my friend, and I know many others that feel the same way. She was a beautiful person both inside and out, and she will be greatly missed. We love you Kirby and always will.
- Jessica
September 3, 2005:
I really don't know how to start off with this story. Between the
hurricane and all the stuff following it, everything seems to have gone to hell. This morning around 8:30 am an oncology doctor came up to me and said
"give it up". I know that Kirby has been getting alot of platlets and blood
but all this time she has many things wrong with her. Even though she is
not responsive, you can see she is still there with us. Me and the Dr. had
a few words but it didn't seem to matter. I spoke to another Dr. and he
could see where I was coming from. Just to say Kirby is in bad shape. She
went through alot trying to get a ride on the helicopter at Tulane Hospital
to get to the hospital in Lafayette. One of the first shootings at the
chopter was with Natalie and Kirby! We lost everything that Natalie and
Kirby had. Her lap top is somewhere on the 4th Floor. They said it would be
there to be picked up later. Yeah right. Besides all this crap, the
Doctors don't think that Kirby will make it. When she was doing good before
the hurricane, she was on a road to the top. While she was stranded, she
lost 3 to 4 hrs. of precious time and started to dehydrate. The story goes
on since I got to Lafayette Wednesday. All I know is that they say she does
not have a chance. I say as long as she is here on earth she still has a
chance. Please Pray for her. She's done nobody wrong. All she needs is a
miracle now.
PLEASE PRAY TO HELP MY DAUGHTER.
Thanks
Donald
September 1, 2005:
Update 1:
Kirby has been located!
She was air lifted to Southwest Hospital in Lafayette!!! Her blood pressure
was dangerously low, unresponsive, very yellow & dehydrated.
She needs blood, fluids and dialysis ASAP.
She is in the ICU wing.
No visitors at this time.
Natalie, her mom, is still stuck in the mess that is FEMA evacuation
system. She is on a bus heading to the hospital.
Pray for Kirby & her mom.
Thanks Again,
Buddy Legnon
Update 2:
When the military evacuated Kirby & her mom, they wouldnt let Natalie take
Kirby's laptop computer. They told Natalie "leave it or stay with it."
Now Kirby is without her main source of communication and she still has
notes to pay on it!
Her computer is sitting on the 6th floor of Tulane Medical center.
If anyone has a spare laptop Kirby can have or borrow, please let me know.
Thanks Again,
Buddy Legnon
August 31, 2005:
i hear on CNN that critical care patients are being air lifted out of NO. I
dont know where they will bring Kirby. I am hoping someone
has some info soon on her condition & location.
Please send us any info u have regarding Tulane evacuee's.
Buddy
I'm not sure what day this email was sent to Buddy:
Well today Kirby was up and talking a little more and understanding than
yesterday.She looked a little better also.The Doctors were happy with the
results of today and feel there is still good hope for her.Just to thank
all of you for the prayers but don't quit because she has a long ways to go
and anything can happen(LETS NOT HOPE SO).They will be reducing some of the
medication that she has been on to see if it will help her with her stomach
problems.They put her on the dialysis machine again today for 4 hrs. and
they took off 3 litters of fluid.She still has problems with her liver and
they will look to see if it is from damage with the complications or the
GVD.Today I went to get something to eat and when I came back Kirby asked
me where I went she thought I left without saying good bye she has never
worried about that before and is nice to be wanted.I thank Weber Marine for
standing behind me because it has helped the attitued of Kirby and Natalie
that I could be there to help them and I believe that me and Kirby will
have a closer bond with each other than we ever had before.I Thank
everybody and please keep Praying for Kirby (Donald).
August 25, 2005:
Update 2:
This morning at the hospital, Kirby was up and alert. Talking a little too. She was looking a little better. Her bag for her Kidney drain had a lot of drain products in it and the doctors where happy with it. They put her on the dialysis machine today for 4 hours. They also gave her a couple new drugs to help with her intestines and stomach. Also her bag was showing less signs of blood in it. The only snag is that her Liver count is up high and her eyes are yellow. Hopefully, with the dialysis today, things will straighten out. I didn't ask the doctors on an update because I just didn't want to hear any more bad news.
Thanks for the prayers and keep them coming.
Donald
Update 1:
Everyone, Kirby's situation is very severe.
This week has seen a sharp decline in her organ function to recently renal
failure. She has begun dialysis to compensate for this.
Her body is not responding to the new medicines she recently started.
Kirby's family needs support. All types of support.
Please pray now and often for Kirby and her family.
This is Kirby's most desperate hour.
Please do the following things for me:
Please sign her guest book.
If you can spare a small donation to help the family pay for the
exorbitant fees they are paying to keep Mom next to Kirby,
then please send your generous donations to:
Kirby Benefit Fund
12197 Leon Rd
St Amant, La. 70774
Make all checks out to Mary Kirby Hawthorne Benefit Fund
or you can go to your nearest Hibernia Bank and make your contribution
there.
thanks to you all,
Buddy
August 24, 2005:
jessica
it is not getting better.
if you have not visited Kirby yet, please do so.
buddy
This morning there were signs of fluids in her bag like her Kidneys are working some what but even with that the doctors to me seem that things don't look to good.They did the second treatment on the machine and took 3 liters of fluid out.Kirby is getting weaker and they are scared that fluids will get in her Lungs and cause her to have Heart failure.The Transplant it self seem to have been working because of things going on Like her Skin regrowing,her nails regrowing but it is Kirby's cells fighting Kerrys cell not wanting to except them.The Doctors are not giving up on her and neither am I but they are just letting us know what could happen.Even if you don't believe in God or go to church STOP and take a few seconds of your time and just pray that A Miracle can happen and they can happen to help her get through this nightmare.I Thank You and My Family and Friends Thank You and Kirby Thanks You.(Donald)
August 23, 2005:
The first thing I want to say is that my spelling is not that great so just put in your head what I am trying to say. Saturday, I put out an update on Kirby that things have changed that were not so good. The Sunday update that I sent out had things looking better. Here we go again with the bad news. Her kidneys started to fail again. Its the GVHD affecting the organ function. The Doctors think this could be effecting her liver too. With a call around noon I left and went to the hospital and she looked bad. The doctors put a cathader in her neck so they could put her on the dialiysis machine. I thought they were going to do it Monday night but they didn't do it untill 11:30 this morning. I am not a doctor but a First Responder but she looked like that she is in stable condition when I saw her today.They put her on the dialysis machine for 2 hours today and Wednesday will be for 3 hours and for Thursday 4 hours. Thats all the news for now. I talked to Natalie around six this afternoon and everything is about the same and nothing worse.I will try to update every day but have to see what goes on. Just, if you can, keep praying for Kirby and Me and My Family. We really appreciate it.
Thanks (Donald)
August 15, 2005:
To all of you that have been praying for Kirby I thank you very much and
Kirby thanks you.But now she needs you to pray even more . It seems that
the medicine they have been given her is not doing the job there supposed
to do with her intestinal problem and she is getting very weak.The Doctors
are going on a World wide search to find something that will help her.I ask
you to pray that the Doctors will find the cure to help my Daughter that
has been suffering so much.Again thank you so much for your prays and
please send this email to your friends and family and whom ever that God
will help the Doctors and Kirby.And I ask Buddy if he can put this on her
website.Thank you and God bless all of you (Donald Hawthorne).
August 8, 2005:
----- Original Message -----
From: Kerry Hawthorne
To: Buddy
Sent: Sunday, August 07, 2005 7:54 PM
Hey Buddy, sorry ya couldn't make it today. We didn't get to visit too
long b/c she had to keep gettin up to go to the bathroom b/c they are
giving her a lot of fluids to flush her out. Plus, she just started the
new meds to stop the diarrhea. She has good and bad days. Right now,
though, her counts are dropping b/c of the switch in medicines. Therefore,
everyone must be make sure to wash their hands and not be sick. Mom said
she had a good day yesterday. She was able to walk in the hall with a mask
and gloves. She is also trying to eat. I just wish I could give her a
big hug but I know I can't. Her swelling in her feet went down a little
bit. Progress will just be very slow.
Kerry
August 5, 2005:
Hey Buddy, Sorry I haven't written in a while. Kirby still had diarrhea & a
bad rash on her stomach. her toenails & fingernails are beginning to fall
out. Her feet are really chapped. Her face is like she got a really bad
sunburn & she just feels yucky & wants to come home. Last word I got was
that today she was to have tests done to determine the cause of her
diarrhea---whether its just really bad GVHD or something else. She did eat
good yesterday (red beans and rice) but that afternoon they told her she
couldn't eat b/c of the tests today. As of 2:00 today, she had not had the
procedure done yet. Jimmy did go see her yesterday. She is also going on
her laptop more often & watching tv. Progress is just slow.
Anyway, I will send you a few new pics of kirb. TTYL! Kerry
July 28, 2005:
I was very fortunate to speak with Her Highness Kirby yesterday. : )
She is a bit down, as I'm sure I would be to after being stuck in a
hospital that long.
Her white count is up! I think it was 6.1 which is very good.
I would assume it would be safe to visit? immune system wise, but she is
not feeling well enough to host visitors.
I would strongly suggest you all call her or email her to approve your
visit.
Her rash is slowly going away. The dr's scaled back her meds to see if it
gets worse again. Time will tell.
she is still on a liquid diet, not solids. She also had a bacterial
infection in her intestines. Poor darlin is very miserable.
But she is getting better just marginally. Leukemia is a blood thirsty
killer and the transplant is the law. Its a long and cumbersome
process, but the end result is worth the wait.
Thank you all for your continued support. I will keep you updated as info
comes my way.
Buddy
www.rikijorocks.com
July 24, 2005:
Hey Buddy! Kirby has not changed too much over the past few days. The
doctors found out that the diarrhea is the result of a bacterial infection.
It is not serious but she is misreable. Now that she finally feels like
eating she can't because the doctors want her digestive system to rest.
Today Mom said that she was a little perkier despite being up all night
sick. She is also starting to peel & will loose all of her toe nails &
finger nails as a result of the GVHD but they will regrow. She is going to
be a whole new person. The doctor even said that we might be able take
her to go to the Aquarium (at the least busiest time) when she moves to the
apartment. That way she wouldn't be stuck in one room a whole week, but it
all depends on how she is doing & feels. Also, thanks for sending out my
web address. I have gotten the most new visitors to the site than I have
ever received! I keep ya posted. Here are two more Kirby pics. I send
you more later. TTYL! Kerry
July 19, 2005:
Below is an email update I got from Kerry yesterday. If you want to send
Kirby Popsicles, please do so!
On a side note, Riki Jo's birthday is tomorrow. Despite it being a somber
day for us, please find time to
log on to www.rikijorocks.com and leave a message on the "guest book" for
Riki and Rylee.
While you are there, please send Kirby some "feedback".
Thanks everyone.
Buddy
www.rikijorocks.com
----- Original Message -----
From: Kerry Hawthorne
To: Buddy
Sent: Monday, July 18, 2005 7:36 PM
Hey Buddy! Here are some more pictures for the website. I wanted to send
more but my computer started acting retarded. My mom got so mad at the
nurses for not coming to check on Kirby during the day or show any concern.
She had a lot of blood in her waste all night. (sorry for the vulgarity)
The have not been giving her enough platelets so she sounded off at the
doctor. It worked though because tons of nurses came in and they flushed
her bladder. Hopefully if all that goes well & she stops losing blood &
having to go to the bathroom every 15 or 30 minutes she will gain back her
strength and feel like eating. Her counts are looking good despite her
weak condition right now & they say the bleeding & other stuff is from the
GVHD. She does crave popsicles--a hard item to find---the only ones at
Walgreens were beef & cheese flavor for dogs. Of all things! Today dad got
her 200 freezer pops, a snoball machine, & 6 bottles ! of syrup so she will
be all fruity up after eating all that. I keep ya posted. Love the new
update for Kirby's page. If ya want to look at my page it is:
http://luckyspaws.netfirms.com. I don't care if you put it on your website
or not. Hope everything is well with you & your family! TTYL! Kerry
July 18, 2005:
(This is the last email Kerry sent to Buddy)
Hey Buddy,
Go to www.emedicine.com/med/topic926.htm &
www.emedicine.com/derm/topic478.htm
These two pages explain GVHD in an easy way & are very imformative. I saw
Kirby today & she looks like she is doing a little bit better. Her rash is
fading & peeling. Soon she will be sheddin' like a snake. Her eyes, lips,
face, etc. are all dry. Her eyes are still a little yellow but blood tests
showed that her liver enzymes are improving so hopefully that will clear up
soon. She still is relying on a feeding tube & doesn't want to eat.
mostly because she still has nausea & diarrhea from the GVHD. Her counts
are steadily climbing except her platelets & the doctors & nurses don't
seem to be giving hardly any. As soon as she begins to eat the doctors say
she will start feeling better and be able to move in with my mom in the
apartment but she just doesn't feel like it. She wanted an icy or snoball
but she can't have ones from the cafeteria or a resturant ! b/c it has to
be made with filtered ice cubes. So me and dad are going to go buy her a
snoball machine. We looked in a nearby Walgreens in NO [New Orleans] but they didn't even have a blender. I wish she had said something before we had got
there. but we must all agree that she has to be feeling better if she
feels like sending emails and talking on the phone. I just hope my marrow
can fight off her leukemia. TTYL. Kerry
July 12, 2005:
I would like to thank the following business for sponsoring the great gifts
for Kirby's benefit.
if you can use them, do so in appreciation of their help for Kirby.
Buddy
Coastal Wire Rope gave chains, ratchet straps, 2 ice chest, $200 donation.
Shipyard Supply gave $250 donation, water cooler, 2 boxes of thirst quincher, 2
gift certificates for golf, certificate for honey baked ham, 2 flashlites, knife, tickets to Tulane game.
United Diesel gave $150 donation.
Kinler Napa gave a ball pen set, tool set.
Geraces Napa gave socket set and a $25 donation.
Morgan City Supply gave the 12v drill.
Cross Country gave the grinder.
Ernest Davis gave the knife set.
Mrs. Canatella gave homade jewelry.
Mathernes Grocery gave cold drinks.
Everybody there gave there hearts and love and sweat to Kirby thank them
all for me they are a great bunch of people.
Donald
July 11, 2005:
Email 1:
The latest on Kirby:
Spoke to Natalie (mom) this afternoon.
Her rash is all over her body. This is because her new cells from Kerry are
not totally accepting the body they are living in. This problem is
called Graft Versus Host Disease or GVHD. Kerry was a 5 out of 6 HLA match,
but it was not perfect. Now this is not easy to explain but I will try,
Dr's say that a little of GVHD is a good thing. AML is very complex and I
am not the guy who can break it down very easily. The rash and GVHD has
Kirby very miserable. She has lots of bags dripping into her catheter.
Morphine, Nutrition, fluids (saline), Antibiotics, anti- seizure meds and
steroids to
help control the GVHD. The Dr's have also confirmed she has a bladder
infection hence the antibiotics.
Steroids commonly make patients swell up. So with the rash and the
swelling, she is not looking or feeling like herself. As a matter of fact
she is
very grumpy (that's the Kirby we know). :)
Her throat is swollen and hurting from ulcers so she is being fed via her
ports.
Her bladder is infected so she is getting antibiotics.
Her pain level is high so she is getting morphine.
They don't want her to dehydrate so she is getting fluids.
They don't want her having anymore seizures so she is on the anti-seizure
meds.
That's one large cocktail.
I'm hoping the Schexnayders can send me some detailed info of their
experience with transplant symptoms. When I get better equipped to
inform you all, I will do so. As for now I would like to encourage you all
to research AML, transplants, and GVHD on the web. If you find any
really informative sites, please send me a link. When I get some good ones,
I will post them to you all.
As for now, we need to continue to pray for Kirby.
Remember, no visitors, no foods, no flowers. Only emails and phone calls.
She has not answered many messages or calls or emails because she
is just feeling terrible. She is not ignoring anyone, she is ignoring
everyone. When you feel as bad as she does, talking is not high on the
list.
Buddy Legnon
Email 2:
Good morning all. The latest on Kirby:
Dr's say she is still doing well but she wouldn't tell you that. Her throat
is still in pain and hurts to swallow. No seizures of late which is good
news. Her white blood count is still very, very low. So the no visitor
policy is still in effect. Kirby has also broken out in a rash all over her
body which is a sign that things are happing
in her blood streams. She is hardly able to speak from the pain in her
esophagus and the ulcers. But she is getting better. : )
More news when I have it....
Benefit
The turnout Saturday was not a big as we would have liked, but it was
successful none-the-less. The unpredictable hurricane in gulf was to blame.
Here are a few benefit facts:
The Blood Bus received 33 units of blood from donors at the benefit! That
equates to $495 in reimbursements to Kirby!
We sold $1900 in jambalaya to the hungry public. The rest left over went to
the Ascension House for needy folks.
We sold 86 t-shirts!? A total of $440 in shirt sales went to Kirby!
Silent Auction items and Raffle tickets as well as general donations raised
over $2000 dollars.
Our approximate total for the day was just over $5000.00
Since our fund raising efforts began for Kirby, we have raised over $11,000
I would like to thank the following sponsors. I have worked with directly
to make this happen. Your generosity are blessings to all:
Freedom Church - Pastor David Villemarette - donated the use of the entire
facility! Truly a blessing! Thanks so much!
Biloxi Screen Print - Teresa Banish - the wonderful and fast job on the
t-shirts
Jim's Ice - Jimmy Boyce - all the ice we needed for the drinks!
The Blood Center - Suzy Potter? - for bringing the bus down and getting
Kirby the needed blood donations.
Cooking for Christ HPC - Barry Reed - for the unbelievable job you do
cooking in the heat, and serving the community. Words cannot describe
the amazing job you do. You have blessed us with your efforts.
Rubicon - for ordering 17 plates of food! thank you!
Audubon Ford and Mercedes Benz of Baton Rouge for ordering a combined 34
plates of food!
A very special thanks to all of you who are on this email list who came out
to support Kirby.
Thanks to the Volunteers for their awesome efforts despite the heat!
Sheri S
Kerry H
Jace B
Julie S
Amy F
Kristie G
Brad H
Brad W
Katie F
Donald H
Roland L
Sheila B
Ed S
Jeremy L
Mary C
Jennifer B
In case I forgot someone, please forgive me. Im exhausted!
MIRACLES HAPPEN
May God bless you all!
Buddy Legnon
July 7, 2005:
These are the last 3 e-mails I received from Buddy on Kirby's Transplant:
Received 7/5/05:
Kirby is doing much better. Dr's have her on anti-seizure meds and are
going to give her an MRI soon. The nausea has settled a bit. I was able to
speak to her this weekend.? Despite being in a painful delirium, she is
doing alright. Time will tell us how the transplant goes. I will keep
everyone posted.
Received 7/1/05:
Here is the update quick and simple:
Kirby in enduring hell on earth. Lots of vomiting with blood in her vomit.
Dr's say its due to tears in her esophagus. They did a scope on her throat
and
confirmed this. All that chemo has made her blood vessels brittle.? Last
nite she suffered 3 seizures. Dr's think its from the medicine or a
combination thereof.
Tests will be done today to confirm.
The transplant is done and Kerry is doing fine. We will have to wait and
see how Kirby responds to the transplant cells.
I will keep you all posted on the latest.
Remember, please no calls or visitors at this time. Send Kirby an email or
some feedback from her page on the website.
Pray for Kirby to get thru all of this soon.
Thanks Again,
Buddy Legnon
Received 6/30/05:
At 8:00am Kerry's procedure began. It was over an hour later. Dr's at
Tulane removed her bone marrow from each hip and will be prepping it
for Kirby to accept it around noon today. I will send out an update when I
get it. Dr's have Kerry in recovery and is doing fine.
Thanks Again,
Buddy Legnon
June 21, 2005:
The Bus from the Blood Center will also be on hand at the benefit to take blood donations. If you can give or plan on giving in Kirby's name, then please send me an email at bnclegnon@etigers.net to "pre-register" with the Blood Center.
June 21, 2005:
Today she had outpatient surgery to add a line to her hickman catheter.
Later today she will start her pre-transplant Chemo. Now she is in the
Tulane
Medical Center Transplant Unit in New Orleans. She begins Dilantin today
and an additional Chemo of Busulfan tomorrow. This Chemo combo will
continue till
Sunday when it will change to Dilantin and Etoposide for a day. On Monday
it changes again to Dilantin and Cyclophosphamide till Tuesday. Wednesday
she will rest. On Thursday is the scheduled Transplant.
Please put your powers of prayer to Kirby and her family during these
delicate and dangerous times. Please remember that Kirby will have no
immune system and will be very,very susceptible to anything. Any illness
she contracts could have very bad consequences. Please stay away from
Kirby. You may send her emails and phone calls but that is it. If you must
send her something, send it to her home in Convent. No flowers, no fruit or
veggies, no animals, no home cooked foods. She will be on a very strict
diet and very limited exposure.
Thanks to everyone for their generosity and concern.
I am looking for a total of 12 volunteers to help with Kirby's benefit.
Volunteers are required to:
- arrive at 8:45am to help set up
- pay a $10 fee for the volunteer staff shirt (I will need your shirt
size)
- volunteers will help with clean up efforts after 4pm (should be minimal
efforts)
- This would require standing on your feet for 4-6 hours
- all volunteers will be dismissed at 5:00pm
- Conservative Dress code only (this benefit is being held at a church, so
all volunteers should look respectable)
- all volunteers are encouraged to car pool as parking is very limited. I
- may even ask that we park in another location and shuttle you to/from.
- Volunteer assignments will be given out the day of the event.
The first 12 individuals, who are in agreement with these requirements, to
send me an email asking to be on the Kirby Hawthorne Benefit Team
will be listed and counted on for help on July 9th, 2005 from 8:45am till
5:00 pm. Please be sure to include your shirt size in your email.
If you get a reply to your email from me, you are on the benefit team.
Please send you email to
buddy_j_legnon@huntsman.com
subject line should read "I want to Volunteer for Kirby!"
June 2, 2005:
Hello everyone, here is the latest on Kirby's fight with AML.
She has finished her re-induction Chemo and her BMB results came back with
no leukemic cells. No she will wait at OLOL for her counts to climb back up
and then she will report to Tulane Medical Center for preparations for a
Bone Marrow Transplant. Her sister is HLA tissue test 5 out of 6 match.
This is great news.
I am currently ironing out details for Kirby's benefit planned in July. I
will announce very soon the details. As of right now we have tons of
fantastic prizes! Its going to be an awesome event. Thanks to everyone who
has donated to Kirby's cause. We have raised over $4 thousand dollars for
Kirby so far! Thanks so much!
I will keep you all up to date as well as I can. Please don't forget to
visit www.rikijorocks.com and send an email to Kirby. Its also the place to
visit Riki and Ed and see pics of the families.
Also, new cancer shirts are being designed that will be a little more
"Church & State" friendly. The word "sucks" will be replaced. More to come
on that soon.
Thanks everyone for your thoughts and prayers.
Buddy Legnon
Team Riki Member
www.rikijorocks.com
225-715-3177 cell
From: Kirby Hawthorne
To: Buddy Legnon
Date: 5/27/05
Hey. Well Dr. Jancich said today that my bone marrow didnt show any
leukemia cells. She did say that I was going to have to go to Tulane
IMMEDIATELY after I leave here..so I can't go home for the week they said I
would be able too. She claims I will have to stay there about a month then
do visits all the time. Also Kerry is a 5 out of 6 match like I
thought..but she claimed it was a perfect match and then said today she
couldnt read it... My temp went up to about 99.9 last night which kinda
freaked me out. I talked to this guy that went to UL that has lymphoma
yesterday and we complained to each other..so that made me feel a bit
better..it was kinda like me and Riki used to do. I guess that is about it
for now...hope you have a good day..talk to ya later.
Kirb
May 26, 2005:
Wow, I really cant explain how wonderful all the friends and family of Kirby have been. Our fund raising efforts so far have been met with a tremendous response. We still have a ways to go, but the support from this community has been overwhelming. The details for Kirby's Benefit will be posted very soon. A few more things need to be ironed out, but check back often as the news could break any day. Flyers will be posted on this site. If you or someone you know has any items of value they can donate to Kirby's raffle or silent auction, please have them contact me ASAP @ bnclegnon@etigers.net .
Kirby had a bone marrow biopsy on Tuesday. She is very sore and her white counts are still very low. The attending physican for the BMB took 4 tries to get the marrow sample! He felt so bad that he donated $100 to Kirby's fund raising efforts! Please continue to refrain from visiting Kirby during her times of low white counts. Also remember the following: Do not send flowers, home made foods w/ meat products, fruits or veges and do not touch Kirby for any reason. She must remain germ and virus free during the time in which she has no immune system. Thanks again for all the love and support!
Buddy
May 24, 2005:
Kirby has been feeling very ill and has headaches. All of these symptoms are very common with large doses of Chemotherapy. But I do have GOOD NEWS! Kerry, Kirby's sister, is a match in the blood test they took. This is fantastic news! Now that this has been determined, the Bone Marrow Transplant wheels can begin to turn. Kirby's white blood count is dangerously low at 0.02 and dropping. Her counts should start to recover over the next 5-10 days. Until her counts get above 1.0, she will need to have no visitors just mom and hospital staff in her room. Thanks for your understanding during her recovery period. More progress has been made in regards to Kirby's benefit plans. I should be able to release detailed information very soon! If you would like to get on the Kirby Hawthorne Update Mailing List, please send me an email @ buddy_j_legnon@huntsman make sure the subject is Kirby's Update Mailing List.
Thanks to you all for your prayers and concerns.
Buddy Legnon
May 17, 2005:
Well, Kirb has finished her 7 days of Chemo. Now over the next week or two, her white counts will be very low and she will need to have no visitors during this time. I will keep everyone posted on her condition as I get updates. Please send her ecards or emails as she has a laptop computer in her room. We really appreciate your concern for Kirby, but when her immune system is low its best that we all think of her first. Plans are getting underway very soon to get Kirby a benefit. I will post all benefit information here as soon as it can be ironed out. Keep the prayers coming!
Buddy
May 14, 2005:
Kirb is on day 3 of her re-induction Chemotherapy. She has been feeling tired and kinda so-so (if you know her well, then that means she is kinda sick, but its tolerable!) Her white blood counts are falling as expected but her immune system is not at a critical stage yet.
Unknown:
Kirby has finished her induction chemotherapy and 4 rounds of consolidation therapy. A few weeks after she completed her treatments, her last BMB showed a 7% return or relapse of the blast cells. Now Kirby is going to attend MD Anderson, the finest and most experienced of all the cancer centers in the world. This fight does not come cheap. There is a real and unexpected problem with her health care coverage. Kirby needs to raise money and raise it fast as she is getting ready to start a costly project. There are lots of people asking me about her insurance and financial situations, but I respect her privacy and will not air out her personal struggles. Instead, you must trust and believe me when I say to you that this is a real delicate situation for her family. We are planning a raffle for Kirby very soon. Currently we are looking for 2 prizes to be donated for this raffle. Prizes should be valued around $200-$500. In the meantime as we search for the prizes to award, we are trying to raise $5000 for Kirby to offset her out of pocket expenses to date. So far we have raised over $500 in only 2 days. This money will go directly to the Mary Kirby Hawthorne Benefit account at Hibernia National Bank.