Community rallies for Carol Stream teen's organ transplant
For the past two years, Jayne Zenker and her family have discovered some of the best gifts and worst challenges life can throw at you.
The 18-year-old Carol Stream girl was diagnosed in 2007 with hepatic adenoma, a rare tumor of the liver that her family said weighed seven pounds.
Zenker underwent surgery at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago to remove the growth. But later she developed a series of complications like vasculitis, hypertension and diabetes. She also contracted a common hospital infection that wasted the already-tiny teen away to 69 pounds.
But before Zenker, her parents, Ellen and Mike, and her younger sister, Meredith, could wonder how they'd make it through, the answer was delivered to their door.
The family's friends, neighbors and fellow members of Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Carol Stream immediately rushed to their aid. They delivered gas cards for the family to travel to Children's Memorial, restaurant certificates for the stretches Ellen and Mike were with Jayne in Chicago, and even a laptop to help the family keep in touch with loved ones.
"I don't think you really notice how much people care for you until you're in a trying situation," said Zenker. "But it's just like people start appearing."
When Zenker's doctors decided she needed a lifesaving liver transplant, her family knew they would need even more help. They reached out to the not-for-profit Children's Organ Transplant Association, which helps raise funds for such procedures. And when their friends, family and church members found out, they stepped up support double-time. Lead by Kirby Williams of Carol Stream, a Corpus Christi Church Knight of Columbus, the group set out to raise $60,000 for Zenker's surgery and drugs that will prevent her body from rejecting the new organ.
"They are an amazing family and we all do whatever we can to help," said Janice Youngwith, whose son attended high school with Zenker.
Youngwith helped organize a Pajama Day on Wednesday, Feb. 4, at Benjamin Middle School in Carol Stream where she works. Students paid $1 to wear their pajamas during the school day. This Sunday, Feb. 8, Youngwith, Wiliams and other volunteers are collecting items to sell during an online auction to benefit the transplant fund. The group also placed drop boxes for donations at local businesses throughout the suburbs, and planned upcoming dine-and-share days at area restaurants.
Ellen Zenker said the church has been "phenomenal" during her family's struggles and has helped them create a "new sense of normal." With volunteers helping to provide their material necessities, Ellen Zenker said she now leaves the rest in God's hands.
"We have a very strong faith and I'm sure God will get her through this one way or another," she said.
As Jayne Zenker waits for her surgery, she attends College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn part-time and is studying to become a nurse. In her free time - or when she's stuck in the hospital - she loves writing poetry and hopes to publish a book.
Zenker still lives with stabbing pains that affect her torso and returned to the hospital in late January with complications. Her family and friends hope the transplant will be the key to her lifelong health.
"There are some days I'll say to myself, 'I will be happy when she is healthy and can live her life, because she's lost out on a lot of living,'" Ellen Zenker said.
What: eBay auction drive
Drop-off: 8 a.m. to noon Sunday, Feb. 8, at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 1415 W. Lies Road, Carol Stream.
Items needed: Musical instruments; cameras and camcorders; iPods, MP3 players and accessories; video game systems, consoles and hand-held units; video games and DVDs (packaged to value $50); automotive parts; motorcycle parts (especially Harley Davidson); larger toys such as pinball machines; computers, peripherals and accessories with owner instruction manuals, print drivers and information appreciated; sports memorabilia with written name and team affiliation; antiques, framed fine artwork and photography; celebrity-autographed items
Details: All donated items should be valued at $50 or more.
Info: cotaforjaynez.com or Kirby Williams at (630) 736-1006.