Every day Bobby Buxbaum adds another goal to the list of tasks he wants to complete after undergoing a double lung transplant.
He put hockey on the list during the Stanley Cup playoffs, but until the 24-year-old Brandon native gets a new set of lungs, hitting the ice will just have to wait.
You see Buxbaum was born with Cystic Fibrosis, an inherited genetic disease that causes glands to produce sticky mucus that clogs the lungs and intestines resulting in problems with breathing and digesting food.
On May 15, his name was added to a transplant list
Now he, his mother Debra, and his sister Jessica Prukner keep the phone close to them, anxiously waiting for the call that will give them the news ? they found a set of lungs for Bobby.
‘Considering I have 17 percent of my lung capacity left, I am close (to the top of the list),? Buxbaum said. ‘My allocation score is 30 and that is pretty high up there.?
He was told some people wait 30 days to nine months for a transplant.
In the meantime, Buxbaum’s family and friends are working on raising enough money to pay for those medical expenses insurance won’t cover.
A Red Carpet Fund-raiser will be held in his honor at the Boulder Pointe Banquet Center in Oxford Twp. on Saturday, July 11 from 6-10 p.m. Tickets are $50 per person.
Buxbaum will use the money raised to cover medical bills and his recovery. He explained the surgery alone is $500,000 and he will be on 17 prescription drugs to help prevent his body from rejecting the new lungs.
The July 11 fund-raiser will honor Buxbaum’s passion for movies.
‘I am a huge movie fan,? he explained. ‘I love movies.?
Guests are invited to dress up as their favorite movie characters.
A contest for best costume will be held with the winner receiving a gift certificate and an Oscar.
Guests can bid on items during a silent auction. Some businesses have already donated things like a vacation package, jewelry, and a teeth whitening, courtesy of Dr. Paul Ferri, an Oxford dentist.
Ferri is also donating Cystic Fibrosis cookbooks, ‘Classic Recipes: Cookbook for a Cure.? a book he put together in honor of his 18-month-old son, who has CF.
‘I am amazed at the generosity of people stepping up and offering to donate things or money,? said Debra. ‘Or instead of just buying ticket, they want to buy an entire table.?
Buxbaum is looking forward to the big event and the movie characters that will be out for the night.
‘I am trying to convince my cousin to go with me and dress as Mel Gibson in Braveheart with the blue paint and the kilts,? said Buxbaum. ‘My cousin said he doesn’t want to wear a kilt.?
Dressing up as the 13th-century Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace would be the perfect costume for Buxbaum considering that all his life, he’s fought his disease with everything he has.
Anybody who knew him was shocked when they learned he had CF because he didn’t let the disease affect him and keep him from running around and joining sports.
‘If you came to me 6-7 years ago and told me I would be on a lung transplant list, I would have been ‘yeah, right no way,?? Buxbaum said.
When he ran track, the CF somewhat affected him and he would cough. ‘I would get a tickle and cough up stuff,? he said.
His disease has been getting worse in the last three years. At first, he would receive antibiotic treatments through a portal in his chest to clean his lungs out every 2-3 months.
Soon, he was receiving those treatments every 30 days.
Buxbaum noticed working and hanging out with friends was becoming difficult to do.
‘My job wasn’t even physical,? he said. ‘It was just the fact of getting up and to work was really hard on me.?
Last September, he realized it was time to do something.
He had finished his shift at work and headed to his night class at Oakland Community College. The parking lot at the Auburn Hills campus was full and he had to park in the very back in one of the last few spots. He had ten minutes to get to class to walk three- quarters of a mile.
‘I just remember walking and focusing on every step,? he said. ? I couldn’t breathe. I don’t remember getting to class. I put my head down in class and thought I have to see my doctor, this is getting too hard for me.?
He went and saw his doctor and the prognosis wasn’t good. ‘His doctor at Harper Hospital handed him a piece of paper and told him ‘if you don’t quit your job or your schooling, your mom will be burying you in a year,?? said his mom, Debra.
Bobby knew he had choices. He could sit around for five years and continue his new life as it was ? being house-ridden, limited to very little activity.
‘But I am not living a life,? he said.
Or he could take a chance and work towards a lung transplant. He went online and researched double lung transplant surgeries and talked to patients. He switched doctors and started going down to University of Michigan Hospital in Ann Arbor.
His sister, Jessica, started a Facebook Cause Group for Bobby called ‘NTAF: Bobby Buxbaum Lungs Transplant Fund-New Lungs, New Life!? ‘It has been a blessing so far,? Buxbaum said.
Within the first weekend 300 people immediately joined and now they are close to 1,000 supporters.
‘As I am writing the thank you (for an online donation), I am thinking I don’t even know you and you are helping me,? said Bobby. ‘Everything is tight right now, especially in Michigan, so it is a blessing.?
Bobby is looking forward to the surgery and his new life after the surgery.
‘When I get my new lungs it will be fun because I can get back into camping and hockey,? he said looking forward to the future. ‘I am a huge hockey fan. Watching the playoffs, I just wanted to pick up a stick and shoot the puck around.?
Bobby also looks forward to going back to work and continuing his studies. His plan is to be a high school video editor and history teacher. ‘I think it would be awesome to teach high schoolers how to shoot movies and how to edit,? he said. ‘I want to impact teenagers? lives and give them some direction.?
Another bonus to the new lungs will be he will never have CF again.
‘These are mutated lungs,? he explained. ‘It’s not like they were good lungs at one point and the CF spread. I will just get your common cold, which is sweet. It’s nothing, it will be a breeze.?
For more information or to purchase tickets for the July 11 fund-raiser at Boulder Pointe, call Jessica at (248)-755-2568.
If you are unable to attend the event, contributions can be made at www.transplantfund.org.