Dinner and dance in honor of local transplant patient

Submitted release 

Bob Glynn, of Canton, would love nothing more than to take a deep breath. Sadly, that’s a luxury he simply doesn’t have.

In 2008, Glynn, now 60, began experiencing extreme fatigue, and he knew something just wasn’t right. After a visit with his doctor and a lung biopsy, he was diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. A lung transplant is essential to his survival.

Doctors don’t know why he developed this lung disease, but Glynn hopes to use this opportunity to educate people about the vital need for organ donors.

The average lung transplant costs approximately $550,000. And that’s only the beginning. Even with health insurance, which will cover a portion of the transplant expenses, he faces significant expenses related to the surgery. For the rest of his life, he will need follow-up care and daily anti-rejection medications, which are as critical to his survival as the transplant.

To help alleviate the financial burden, Glynn turned to the National Foundation for Transplants (NFT) for assistance with some of these financial burdens. NFT is a nonprofit organization that helps patients raise funds to pay for transplant-related expenses.

“My heart goes out to Bob,” said Claire Prince, NFT fundraising consultant. “I love how supportive and happy his family and friends are. It’s obvious he is a well-loved person in his community, and I hope this event will be a great success. Everyone at NFT wants to help them raise the necessary funds so Bob can focus on his health and his family, not his medical bills.”

Saturday, Oct. 26 at 7 p.m., volunteers are holding a dinner and dance at La Trattoria Restaurant on Brass Lantern Rd.—Route 44 in Canton.

Tickets are $50 each, and the event will include a dinner buffet, along with a tea cup auction, 50/50 auction, musical entertainment by a DJ and dancing.

For more information, contact Glynn’s wife, Janet, at glynn_cantonct@msn.com or 860-463-8355.  

To make a tax-deductible donation in honor of Glynn, please send a contribution to the NFT Connecticut Transplant Fund, 5350 Poplar Ave., Suite 430, Memphis, TN 38119. Please be sure to write “in honor of Bob Glynn” on the memo line. Secure donations also can be made online at www.transplants.org--select “Find an NFT Patient” to locate Glynn.

About NFT

NFT is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization based in Memphis, Tenn. that has been helping transplant patients overcome financial obstacles since 1983. NFT provides fundraising expertise to transplant patients by organizing fundraising campaigns in the patients’ own communities. NFT’s fundraising campaigns have generated nearly $60 million to assist patients. NFT assists more than 2,500 transplant candidates and recipients nationwide. For more information about NFT, please call 800-489-3863 or visit www.transplants.org.