LOCAL SISTERS JUMPING IN TO HELP CYSTIC FIBROSIS
Joey Haegele, owner of Crock-O-Gator Bait Company stumbled across a photo on Facebook with a picture of a gentleman she had never seen before. What caught her eye in this photo, was the flyer that read “38th Annual Cystic Fibrosis benefit buddy bass tournament, April 29th, 2023 on Lake Norfork.
Joey and her sister Jessica Swast, who runs Fitz Fishing’s Camdenton Location here in the Ozarks, both have the lung disease known as Cystic Fibrosis, and both have been very involved with all things fishing in our community.
So they quickly got in touch with the Frazier Family, Rick and Lois, whom have a daughter named Jessica who is 42 years of age, and has had quite a different story with this disease than our local girls. Jessica Joice Frazier has been very sick and had many complications from a very young age. By age 15, she needed a Lung Transplant. They put Jessica on the transplant list but was told she would not live long enough to get the lung she needed to survive. The family made the decision to go forward with a different type of transplant called a Living Related Lung Transplant, where the surgeon goes in, and transplants only the lobes of the lungs. A very risky, highly understudied procedure at that time.
Jessicas’ Dad Rick and Mom Lois could have easy accepted defeat, but they are survivors. Immediately going into” What can we do to help others” mode and they have not stopped! This will be the 38th year running for the buddy bass tournament, The family has thrown concerts raising thousands for research. All 3 of these ladies with Cystic Fibrosis have given their time for research studies, some were not effective, but other studies being life changing.
The latest medication that came down the pipeline was a ‘miracle drug” but only for half of the CF population with Cystic Fibrosis, which has changed Joey and Jessica Swasts life forever. When Joey was younger she was involved in a reasearch study for this exact drug that has now came out and has reversed the disease within hers and her sisters body. Unfortunatley Jessica Frazier is not a candidate for this medication because she had a lung transplant. SO WE ALL WILL CONTINUE to fight for a cure!
SO LETS ALL FISH FOR A CURE!!!!
You can sign up at the ramp or at Hope4cf.org
You can follow on FaceBook at Cystis Fibrosis of West Plains