Pray for Luke

Rare Disease Champion Finalist

2012-01-26T09:52:00.001-08:00

I found out yesterday that Luke was nominated as a finalist for a Rare Disease Champion Award. His story and the opportunity for us to vote for him will be available next Wednesday, Feb. 1 at this link: http://www.upliftingathletes.org/ua-news/four-finalists-named-2012-rare-disease-champion-aw
Four Finalists Named for 2012 Rare Disease Champion Award | Uplifting Athletes

Four Finalists Named for 2012 Rare Disease Champion Award | Uplifting Athletes

www.upliftingathletes.org

Four finalists have been named for the 2012 Uplifting Athletes Rare Disease Champion Award. They include: Nebraska's Rex Burkhead, North Carolina State's Wayne Crawford, UCLA's Luke Gane and Florida's David Lerner. The honor is presented annually to recognize a leader in the world of college foot...

UCLA '11

2012-01-26T09:50:00.000-08:00

Luke's football season went pretty well. He made the travel team and earned a starting role on special teams. He even got some reps at Tight End. He's excited about the new coaches and the
future. Here are some pics from this last season.

The Latest Miracle

2011-10-28T14:21:00.001-07:00

Luke being on the team at UCLA was a miracle in itself. I and others had limited hope that he would ever see the playing field. It's rare that an un-recruited, walk-on athlete gets playing time, but Luke with the blessings of God, some great encouragement from Tim Tebow and others, Luke has made the travel squad and is starting on kick return for in this his red-shirt freshman year.

I often reflect on where he is compared to where he could be. God has seen fit to spare Luke's life and to move him along to the place where he is playing football at a D-1 university! Moreover, Luke has been able to be a positive and uplifting influence to fellow athletes and even some coaches. God is using him as salt and light at UCLA! It's unbelievable and a great testimony to what I have repeatedly credited in these posts - The grace of our loving Lord, the prayer and support of a wide network of family and friends, and the awesome medical work from the team at CHOC! We are very grateful!

Summer Fun

2011-10-28T13:47:00.000-07:00

So Luke was able to meet with Tim Tebow this summer.
Make a Wish was so generous and provided a first class experience. Luke was one of few kids that MaW hosted to for this trip. It went great! Luke and the family (sans Joshua and Dad, who were at Volleyball National Championships in Minnesota) spent a full day with Tim, who was exactly as expected - kind, gracious, faith filled, down to earth and intense about football. Luke and the boys got plenty of tips for excelling in life and sports. They had a blast!
Thanks to Make a Wish and to Tim Tebow for their generosity! If you are ever contacted by Make a Wish to donate, you should feel free to do so knowing that they do an amazing service for sick kids. Luke and all the other guests of Make a Wish had an amazing time!

Overdue

2011-08-08T17:28:00.001-07:00

It's been way too long since we posted anything to Luke's blog. There is a lot to update and we will post some info and pics updating Luke's health and life in the coming weeks.

In the meantime: Luke is doing very well. He's feeling great everyday. There are no left over effects from his bout with Aplastic Anemia. Last year, he struggled with a number of infections including mono, but he has fought them all off well. He also had another nasal passage surgery to clean out infection and clogging. We are very hopeful that he has a way better winter than last year, which was filled with many colds and sinus infections.

Summer 2011 has gone well for Luke. The boys train hard in summer. He worked in football office a few days a week. Luke's Make a Wish was realized. He got to meet Tim Tebow in Denver.
There are stories and pics at: Trip to Remember.
UCLA has been a big challenge! The team reported for camp yesterday and began the long days of summer camp today. Luke is working and praying hard to make the travel team.

There is a free scrimmage on Aug. 20 at 5pm on campus at Drake Stadium. Please feel free to join us.

That's a quick update and I'll be posting more in the weeks to come!

One Year, But...

2009-11-19T20:59:00.000-08:00

Last Friday Edison played Fountain Valley in the Bell Game. You might remember that last year's Bell Game was Luke's first trip back to the football field. That was a special night for him and our family. So was this year's game. To see him out on the field healthy and playing and enjoying the experience with
his team was priceless. We are so grateful and we know that many people in the community recognize the miracle it is that Luke is playing. We continue to rejoice in God's good gifts to Luke!

BUT we are saddened too by the fact that people still struggle with and die from cancer and blood born diseases. In the last two weeks we have heard about or experienced: A young mother of a student at our church fade away leaving a husband and three children. A former hockey teammate of Josh's, who was cleared of cancer a year ago, saw its return. A sophomore football player from Palos Verdes coming home from the hospital this week after a very scary bout with lymphoma (a bone marrow transplant seems to be doing a great job in him right now!) and today I received an Email informing me that Britt Merrick, (a pastor inCarpenteria and the son of cancer survivor/legendary surfboard shaper Al Merrick) has swine flu while his young daughter is receiving chemo treatments! Can you believe the hardship on that family?! Here is the link to their blog: http://prayfordaisy.tumblr.com/post/241030040
She received some "bad" chemo at some point and is not doing too well and she's scared.

We invite you to add these folks to your prayer list. I realize that we all are probably associated with people who have similar challenges going on right now in their lives. Prayer does make such a difference! And so does a loving, caring community of friends and family. Donating blood or platelets and joining the Bone Marrow Registry (It's painless!) are three great things we can do to come along side and support as well. We and these listed appreciate your support. May God bless you!

Become a Donor

2009-10-12T16:05:00.000-07:00

Many of you over the past year have asked how you can specifically support Luke. Now that he's completely healthy, the best way for you to support him, is by getting on the BONE MARROW REGISTRY. If Luke's little brothers, Jacob & Noah, had not been matches, Luke would have been looking for a donor on this registry. Make a difference in someone's life on the chance that you might be a match. No blood will be drawn to get on the registry. The only thing needed is a swab of the inside of your mouth. THAT'S IT!

Normally the cost to get on this registry is around $50. But this donor drive is ABSOLUTELY FREE! Come to Luke's game on Friday, October 30th and show your support for him by joining the Bone Marrow Registry. (The game does cost BUT we will be outside of the stadium from about 5 to about 7:10 and then move inside once the game gets going.)

CLICK TO ENLARGE

October '09 - The Latest

2009-10-02T14:14:00.000-07:00

Luke feels great! He seems like he is to the point where last year's ordeal is generally a faint memory. Sure, he thinks about it often, but in terms of how he feels and how he expects to perform - he feels healthy and strong. I think most of his thoughts regarding last year's battle with Aplastic Anemia focus on God's good grace to bring Him healing and extreme gratitude for where he is at today thanks not only to God, but also to an amazing bunch of people in our community!!!!! I know he feels so very, very blessed! And so do we.

As far as doctors and such - Luke, besides great help at EHS from Lance "the trainer who trains" (a movie reference) has been getting some amazing therapy for various football dings at the Rock Institute. We can tell you both from personal experience and testimonies from others we know who have received treatment there - That is one great treatment facility! Next Friday, Luke goes to CHOC for a check up and a second round of shots. We expect a full bill of health and if anything other than that kind of report happens, I will let you know.

Edison played Mater Dei last night and Whew! That game and the outcome was incredible!!!!!! Check out these two links for some cool news and photos.
http://www.ocvarsity.com/sports/edison-16839-mater-game.html
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-edison-mater-dei2-2009oct02,0,7494200.column
Now after 2 weeks of two of the most intense football games ever played, he is pretty worn out and grateful that next week is a bye week. All the guys at Edison will be in rebuilding mode for a few days. Please continue to pray for Luke and if you wouldn't mind, I know he would appreciate your prayers for Edison football too!

A Year Later:

2009-09-21T13:02:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow & Beyond

2009-09-04T11:39:00.000-07:00

Luke takes the field tomorrow night for the first time since going down with Aplastic Anemia. We are very excited about it and looking forward to not only seeing him play this season, but also seeing many of you at one or some or all of his games.

Here is the link to the Edison Chargers game schedule: http://www.edisonchargerfootball.com/game_schedule.html
It's downloadable too if you want that option.

Another feature of Luke's return has been some news in papers and/or online. Below are some of the links. Read those if you are interested and have time.

This is the latest one:
http://www.hbindependent.com/articles/2009/09/02/top_stories/hbi-ganefeat090309.txt

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/varsitytimesinsider/2009/08/football-gane-makes-incredible-comeback-at-edison.html

Articles about Edison that include Luke can be found on the Register's OCVarsity page: http://www.ocvarsity.com/sections/boys-football/

When it comes to the attention in the media or any other attention we might receive because of Luke, it is our hope and prayer that:
1, God's goodness would be seen and honored. It's because of Him that anything good has come from Luke's ordeal.
2. Attention be given to blood born diseases and cancer. We hope that people who hear Luke's story be inspired and encouraged to be a support when they encounter others whose lives are being threatened by illness. Prayer makes a difference. Love and friendship make a difference. Practical support makes a difference. Donating blood and joining the Bone Marrow Registry makes a difference! And with that last one, I want to let you know that we are committed to providing a chance for our friends and neighbors to join the Bone Marrow Registry. We are leaning very hard toward an October 30 drive. We will let you know very soon how that is coming together.
3. We wish for due praise and thanks to be given to our family, church, friends, neighbors, everyone connected at Edison H.S, teammates, coaches, H.B. Pop Warner, Servite H.S., Luke's pediatric office, CHOC hospital, etc, etc, etc. We are forever grateful!
4. Finally, we hope that Luke can be in the place where if he is in the press at all, he is talking about helping Edison Football pursue a Sunset League Championship and the Pac 5 Playoffs.

The 2009 football season is shaping up to be a great one. We feel very blessed that Luke can be a part of it this year!

LA Times

2009-09-02T13:22:00.000-07:00

Check it out:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/varsitytimesinsider/2009/08/football-gane-makes-incredible-comeback-at-edison.html

Season Kicks Off

2009-08-28T08:28:00.000-07:00

The Chargers finished their last day of "Two a Days" yesterday. Luke feels better than he expected. Tonight at 7p is Edison's annual inter-squad scrimmage. It will be played on the turf field at the high school. Luke has been moved from Defensive End to Offensive Right Tackle and he is excited about the prospects for this season. We are really, really looking forward to this year's football season. It is shaping up to be quite exciting. It will be great to see many of you stop by a game or two. Here is a link to our game schedule: http://www.edisonchargerfootball.com/game_schedule.html
All the games will be good games. I think the Servite game will be particularly good and of course the Battle for the Bell vs. Fountain Valley is always a blast. You should keep an eye on our October 30 game too. We are in the process of trying to get a Bone Marrow Donor Registry table at that game. Tomoko and I will be co-hosting an effort to enlist people onto the Bone Marrow Registry. If you are not on it, you could be easily and painlessly. We will let you know more as that opportunity develops.

Luke's first official game back will be next Friday, 7p, at HBHS vs. Artesia. What a blast that is going to be! There is extra anticipation for the start of this season for sure. What an exciting and triumphant night! I have been wondering how to direct people to handle having "Pray for 55" stickers on their cars now that Luke is well. Truthfully, I'm not too sure. Of course we value prayers for Luke even if he is well, but it seems like an act of praise and thanksgiving might be to remove the stickers once Luke has played in his first game. People are free to do what they wish with the stickers, but I just cannot imagine everybody keeping those on your cars forever, right?

There is a lot of promise in the future for Luke. Again, we are so overwhelmed with gratitude. His story will continue on throughout this season thanks to our great God, and amazing friends, family and community! A really cool article appeared this week on OCVarsity.com. Here is the link, if you did not get a chance to see it yet: http://www.ocvarsity.com/sections/slideshow/?id=621388

2009-08-17T22:05:00.000-07:00

Last week was the one year anniversary of us discovering that Luke had a life threatening illness. Hitting Tomoko and me were vibrant recollections of the beautiful summer day me and the Luke's little brothers were surfing and playing at Bolsa Chica while Tomoko was receiving an urgent phone call from Luke's doctor instructing her to get Luke to ER as soon as possible. A little while later we are taking an ambulance ride from Hoag Hospital to CHOC (Children's Hospital of Orange County). It was somewhat frightful, to say the least, when we were taken to the third floor where we read a sign boldly proclaiming the potential seriousness of Luke's illness -- HEMATOLOGY/ONCOLOGY. For the next several days we rode the roller coaster of mystery and confusion as so many blood tests were taken, and transfusions were given and any number of possible diseases or infections were being investigated. Through it all, Luke was strong and faith filled and encouraged. Discovering that Luke had Aplastic Anemia was somewhat of a relief. At least it was not cancer, right? Finding a bone marrow donor was our new objective. Three brothers were tested and two were a match! The twins! Our youngest son would be Luke's rescuer from his adversary. Several days of intense chemo-therapy were followed by a most triumphant day - September 2, 2008 - the day Jacob's bone marrow was harvested and then transplanted into Luke! Hope filled our hearts when this day was accomplished.

Hope has been realized. Luke is well and almost completely free to live normally. There are still follow up visits and a series of shots to revive his inoculations and of course the underlying fears that he might relapse. But that is really not very likely at all. Mostly, we anticipate that Luke will have a normal rest of his life. He is doing so well right now. He is training hard for football. He is fully cleared by the doctors to play. He is looking forward to it more than you could imagine.

It's kind of weird maybe, but do you know what I think about more than all of those painful early days of Luke's ordeal? The things that regularly consume my mind in regards to this last year's long journey are:
Our medical team beginning with Luke's regular doctor's office. We may have not found out the seriousness of Luke's condition without our dedicated and capable doctors at Pediatric Care Medical Group. Then there is the "The HemTeam". The doctors and nurses at CHOC, who are second to none. We have been so blessed to have received such great care!!! The days of uncertainty were made much less troubling by the genuine care and awesome medical treatment we received. Next is our community. I am continually blown away by the outpouring of love, care, prayers, support and encouragement we have received throughout this ordeal. I could fill page after page of thanksgiving and praise for the many people from CrossPoint Baptist Church, Edison High School, Huntington Beach Pop Warner, our neighbors, friends family and even strangers. We are overwhelmed with gratitude! Through all these days we have been loved by a heavenly Father. We have found Him to be our Rock! So stable and unmovable. So trustworthy! We could not have made it without His providing all of these wonderful gifts. When I look back on all of it, I think it is quite miraculous.

So, yesterday was Luke's monthly follow up and everything is looking great! He is still cleared by the HemTeam to play football, go to school and live normally. As far as we can tell at this point, he is living like we would have expected him to be if he never had Aplastic Anemia. At this point Luke and we are living in grand anticipation of him returning to the Charger playing field. Hopefully, most of you reading this can make a game and see him play. It should be a great season! I'll be sure to let you know when and where games are. In the meantime have a great rest of summer and may God bless you!

Cool News

2009-07-07T18:02:00.001-07:00

Luke had a check up last Wednesday. He is doing really, really well. Dr. Soni reported that since things have been so good, the HemTeam (Hematology Team of doctors) is inclined to fully release Luke to play football this summer/fall. He will be able to get his inoculations started a little early too. All of that is really good news since last year we were told that it was possible Luke would not be cleared for contact untilthis September 2nd. Luke has been fighting a little cold, which was sort of a concern, but the good news is that unlike before, this cold is not getting worse and worse as the days go by, but instead it's actually getting better. Physically, Luke feels great. He competed with the football team in a linemen competition last Thursday and they did really, really well. He also played Kajabi-Kan-Kan at our church picnic on Sunday and won the high school division. Then he won the egg toss with a Fountain Valley Baron no less! So things are going really, really well. We are very encouraged and feel very blessed that so many people have prayed, encouraged and helped along the way. Thanks to you all!

Follow Up

2009-06-04T10:32:00.000-07:00

Luke had his follow up doctor's appointment yesterday (Wed. 6/3). They gave him a quick look over and let us know that he is doing well and that he had the same flu his brother had - Influenza A plus the sinus issue. The very good news is that all biopsies are clear! And the gray spots on lungs are clear too. Furthermore, this bout was just another confirmation that his immune system is working very well. His counts went down a little, but that is normal when one has an infection. Luke is back at school and free to participate in football as fully as he feels he is able. Doctor Sony said that their team is very committed to getting Luke back to football on a normal schedule for the fall, so that is really, really good news. So our prayers were answered and it is so good to see Luke home, in school and near normal health again! Thanks for the prayers!!!

Home

2009-05-30T16:00:00.000-07:00

Luke came home Saturday afternoon. What a blessing! It's so good to have him home. He seems to be doing very well. The whole family went to see "Up" (a very, very well made and enjoyable movie!) in the afternoon and some of his buds came over in the evening. It was great to see him back in action. He is on a round of heavy anti-biotics and a bunch of nose sprays. He is free to go back to school and will resume football training when he is up to it.
I don't exactly know what to write about his illness. I think he had sinusitis and the flu at the same time. As far as Aplastic Anemia, he is fine. His counts dropped slightly, but held steady and the doctors seem confident that his immune system remains in tact. That's great news and so is the cleaning out of his sinuses. While we are a little tired of these little trips to the hospital, we are grateful that CHOC gives such wonderful care and an ongoing major issue for Luke looks to be remedied. Knowing that people invest time praying for Luke and our family means so much. It has brought us great assurance and comfort. Resting in the fact that God hears and cares for His children has most definitely carried us through!

CT Scans Are In

2009-05-29T17:39:00.001-07:00

Top View:
Channels are supposed to be black. The dark gray is clogging.
Front View:
The black parts are good. The dark gray is clogging.

This passage is supposed to be clear all the way around the circle!

Looking Better

2009-05-29T16:36:00.000-07:00

Pictures of Luke's clogged sinuses and of the procedure to clear them were on the counter when I got home last night. Tomoko showed me the CT scans which revealed amazingly clogged passages. He had radical and intense blockage of all passages and mucus was entering his frontal lobe! The doctor who did the surgery was quite impressed. They clipped, trimmed, suctioned and cleaned a whole bunch of mess out of there. There is a picture on the blog that might gross you out, but it's worth seeing if you want a true impression. I cannot imagine how Luke has been able to function so well. I will post the scan pics later and you can see how major all this junk was.

It is looking more and more like Luke is fighting a serious infection. Tomoko and I think he is fighting both sinusitis and the flu.
In either case, Luke is feeling better and may come home Sunday. The biopsy testing was still going on when I left the hospital, but a doctor said that all the early results look good and that they test for the most serious stuff first, so we like the sound of that. I don't know if we will be able to pen point the original cause, but we are working toward and praying for complete clarity of the infection and a full and complete recovery. Luke is anxious to get back to school and to football. I'm hoping to relay only good news from now on. Thanks again for all the prayers, the offers of support and many other kindnesses. We appreciate it very much!

WARNING: GRAPHIC PHOTO BELOW

2009-05-29T15:43:00.000-07:00

This is what the doctors pulled out of Luke's nose, sinus polyps. No wonder he's been feeling sick:

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Recovering

2009-05-28T15:48:00.000-07:00

Wow! What a 24 hours! Luke went in for his sinus procedure at 11:50pm last night. They did a biopsy AND cleared out his very blocked sinus passages including some pollups. It took longer than expected and they got him cleared out really good. I hear that he is not too sore, but he is bleeding some. I guess that's normal. He is in recovery now from a the bronchoscopy at around 11:30 am today where they did a biopsy on his bronchial passages and lungs. As far as I know he is doing well.

We have a little more clarity than yesterday. Basically, the doctors are searching for any possibility of an infectious disease and they are trying to specify what it might be so they can treat it correctly. Luke has been coughing like crazy and he has a small gray spot on his lung, so that's what is getting the biopsy today. They do not seem to be responding to that like: "O my goodness, let's get after that thing", but instead it's more like: "Hey, we should check that out". That may change after results come in, but that is the impression I get. We probably won't see those results until some time tomorrow. I know they are hoping it's an infection, but it could also be a fungus, which is another story. Fungus takes more time to heal! The doctors are encouraged that Josh is home with the flu (influenza type A), because that washes well with Luke's most recent symptoms. Our hope and prayer is that it turns out to be a simple and easily treated infection, the sinuses are clear for good and Luke will be back better than before now that he can breath correctly and the mystery infection can be effectively treated.

It has been such a comfort to Luke and our family to know that so many are praying for him and us. This is kind of a confusing time and still we feel so undergirded by prayers and care from family, friends and church. Thanks so much! I know the Pacharkas appreciate your prayers too. Elijah is still on target to come home tomorrow! How cool is that?!

Wednesday 5/27/09

2009-05-27T14:45:00.000-07:00

I want to thank everyone who has joined us in praying for Elijah Pacharka. His parents received good news from the doctor today that his counts are recovering nicely and he should be able to go home this weekend! How very cool is that?!!!

Luke is still in the hospital and it looks like he'll be there a few more days. He's feeling a little better, but still fighting off the fever, the clogged sinuses and a cough. He has been given some some meds to relieve it all, but it takes a few days to really get going. These symptoms have been recurring for some time and while we don't like that Luke is ill or in the hospital, we are grateful that the doctors are paying really good attention to this ongoing condition. We are hopeful for a real and lasting solution to present itself. It would be great if that solution was also simple, painless and quick. The doctors are going to take a serious look into this sinus and cough issues of Luke's. They have ordered a new set of more thorough tests for today and tomorrow morning. These tests are are surgical in nature, so it is a somewhat serious procedure. We do not know exactly what the doctors might suspect, but we do know they are considering infectious diseases among other possibilities. We won't have any clarity until the results come in and I expect those sometime tomorrow afternoon.

Waiting and not knowing is so hard, but our hope still rests in a loving God who encourages us to not lean on our own understanding, but in all our ways acknowledge Him (Prov. 3:5-6). I am thankful that we can join in acknowledging Him through prayer. We are so very grateful to the hundreds of friends who continue to pray for Luke and our family!

May 26

2009-05-26T15:20:00.000-07:00

Luke is still at CHOC. He has to stay until he has been clear of a fever for 48 hours and as of last night, he still had one, so he's not home yet. Medically, the good news is that all of his counts are high and it seems like none of his issues are related to Aplastic Anemia or the bone marrow transplant. He has been diagnosed with sinusitis (sinus infection). The curious part is that he remains on this odd cycle where he gets a sinus cold, it develops into an infection with a massive cough, then he goes on antibiotics and it recycles again after a few weeks. He is getting attention from an Ear Nose Throat specialist (ENT) including CT scans of his sinuses and his chest. Next week he gets a full allergy work up, so hopefully, we can find a solution to that whole issue between now and then.

Prayers for Luke are definitely appreciated and if you can, please include prayers for Elijah Patcharka (Sp?) who is part of the Edison/Pop Warner football family too. He was admitted to CHOC over the weekend with meningitis.

Luke Admitted 5/23

2009-05-23T15:42:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone. It's great to have a three day weekend, isn't it? I hope you are getting excited about summer. We think it's going to be a good one.

Luke is being admitted to CHOC today because of a 102 degree fever and some throwing up. We are pretty sure he has a minor flu, but the doctors want to be sure. Hopefully, it's a one night deal. It is hard to believe it's anything else because he continues to feel real good throughout the day including during and after intense football work outs.

Luke has been doing fabulous aside from the sinus trouble and eventual coughing. We go through an entire allergy work up on June 3 and hopefully they can find both the cause and a solution then.

While we are not overly concerned, we very much covet your prayers. Who knows for sure? I suppose it could be a relapse, but I doubt it. I expect to hear results by tomorrow and I will send another update when I do. Thanks for the love and support!

2009-05-04T11:51:00.001-07:00

It has been so exciting to see how well Luke is progressing. It can be funny sometimes. People who have known Luke for a long time see him, but don't recognize him. Luke shows up at events or activities and catches people by surprise because they do not realize how strong and healthy he is. Earlier this month, he went to the a football recruiting combine (a kind of testing ground for football players) and our good friend who was helping run the combine was shocked to see Luke there. Luke did fairly well too as did pretty much all the Edison football players. It was a fun day. You can see the boys' times and scores at espn.com/recruiting.
About the only concern for Luke is the ease with which he gets sinus infections and/or coughs. We are seeing an Ear/Nose/Throat specialist May 12th for that. Luke says he feels really strong, and overall he says he's at about 90%. So pretty much life is normal for Luke. We continue to be grateful for his progress and for the amazing support of family, church, friends and community. We could not be here without you!

Great News/Small Scare

2009-03-24T11:09:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago today, Luke called to report that his nose was bleeding. Kinda freaked us out since that was the first sign of
him having aplastic anemia back in July. Fifteen minutes later he called to say the bleeding had stopped. We all thought that was great news because it confirmed that his body is working right. It never bled again and Luke has learned that blowing his nose requires a different intensity than tackling running backs. The Friday previous to that Tuesday, Luke had blood work done in relation to a virus he was fighting and it is all looking really, really good.

About the biggest concern at this time is that Luke seems to have some kind of nose or throat or chest infection full time. He's on his fourth round of antibiotics since January. We are hoping it's the last round for a while. Last Wednesday we went in for our monthly check up and the doctors remain encouraged. Luke got some new freedoms and is excited that he is getting stronger and his stamina is building. I will try to get some new pictures on the blog, so you can see what a healthy Luke looks like at 6'3", 233 pounds.

By and large Luke is living a normal life. He is going to school and loving it. Driving his car all over the place and hanging with friends. This is the first week he will be able to participate fully in football training (while being careful to pace himself). He is at church and Bible Study each week and he remains a great big brother to his 4 younger brothers. We are incredibly grateful for Luke's progress and feel very, very blessed by God to be at this point in the ordeal.

Sad News

2009-03-05T11:54:00.001-08:00

Luke and we have sad news to report. His young friend that he made while in NICU at CHOC, Bella, passed away on Tuesday morning. After over two years (basically her entire life) of fighting she gave in to the relentless attack of cancer on her little body. I know that her family very much have appreciated the love and prayers that have poured out on them through this time and I am sure they now covet our prayers for support and encouragement through the approaching difficult days of mourning and then trying to move past this tragedy. Luke is saddened by Bella's death, but relieved to know that she is whole and healthy with God in heaven.

2009-02-23T10:48:00.001-08:00

Luke went to the doctors on Wednesday. This was a scheduled appointment. The trip to the ER on Sunday was not. Yep, we had to call the doctors because he threw up. They called him in and everything checked out fine. On Wednesday we heard Luke's counts remain solid. The swelling in his feet and legs is under control and he is doing very well. All of that is such great news! He now only needs monthly check ups. He is able to go into houses with dogs (though he is supposed to avoid contact). Luke was incredibly excited to be able to go to his friend's houses now. He is cleared to start running (being careful to pace himself) at football. Things continue to progress nicely. The biggest concern is to avoid infections. The doctors mention his being able to return to playing football in the fall. It seems like such a small thing to even mention. We are so grateful that he is well and football will definitely be a bonus!!!

Bella Fundraiser

2009-02-11T07:31:00.000-08:00

The fundraiser for Bella Alcala is this Sunday, February 15th at Lamppost Pizza in Huntington Beach (Goldenwest and Warner location). The time is from noon to 5:00 p.m. Please come enjoy some pizza while supporting my two-year-old buddy, Bella, who is in need of a bone marrow transplant.

Thank you for your support!

In Him,

Luke #55

Luke's Week

2009-02-04T21:53:00.000-08:00

Luke is really enjoying school. Last week he told a parent friend of ours that unlike his classmates, he is no longer excited about
Fridays because it means the school week is over. I don't know how long that will last, but we are glad he is re-adjusting so well.
He still has that nagging cough and infection. He went to the doctor on Monday and they gave him more antibiotics because infections pose a very real threat to the full engraftment of the bone marrow. Hopefully, it goes away quickly. Football has been challenging. It's really hard for Luke to not want to do everything everyone else is doing, but he does think he is catching up pretty well. We remain patient and determined in the full year trek to complete recovery.

Luke asked me to comment on the tragic death of his good friend Nick Mazzone. Nick was just 16 years old and full of life and hope and love. Luke covets your prayers on behalf of the Mazzone family and the Edison High School community. There is no need to comment on this tragedy here. If you'd like to pay your respects to Nick his funeral will be Monday February 9th at 11 a.m. (that is a new time). In the meantime we take comfort in the fact that Nick professed a faith in Jesus Christ and in the fact that so very many people are praying for this family!

Fundraiser For the Alcala Family

2009-02-03T08:26:00.001-08:00

There will be a fundraiser for Jorge, Summer, and Isabella Alcala on February 15, at Lamppost Pizza. I will give exact directions to Lamppost soon, but the fundraiser will be held from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. A majority of the proceeds will go to the Alcala family, and there will be a sign up sheet for the National Marrow Donor program (http://marrow.org/). All of us would greatly appreciate you coming and supporting this wonderful family.

In Him,
Luke Gane #55

2009-01-30T15:30:00.000-08:00

Luke did not have a doctor's appointment today (Fri 1/30). It got moved to next Wednesday. It's been a very exciting week. Seeing him go back to school and return to a mostly normal life is quite a joy. It was a jolt too. He is in football class and he must have overdone it because he could barely walk on Thursday. The coaches are doing an excellent job telling him to take it easy, but he just needs to do an excellent job of paying attention to that good instruction. About the only concern we have is this nagging cough Luke has. It can be really bad at night and it keeps him from sleeping. Other than that, he looks and feels really good. We definitely notice him being more up beat. We have interesting talks about what God is teaching Luke through these times. He told me this week that he is figuring out what is really important in life. If you ever get a chance, I encourage you to ask him about what he is learning. I will be sharing our family's story next Sunday February 8 at my friend's church in Vista. We have definitely learned some very profound lessons. I will try to post the sermon to the blog if that's possible. If not, I will post a link to a site where it can be downloaded. I am just now remembering that 2 weeks ago I failed to report that Luke and the family were invited to be guests at Mia Hamm's and Nomar Garciapara's Celebrity Soccer Challenge, which benefited bone marrow family services at Children's Hospital of Los Angeles. What was most astounding was that they had two survivors who had received transplants come on the field at half time. Then they brought in the individuals who anonymously donated the bone marrow and introduced them to the healthy recipients . It was truly a miraculous and emotional event. Tomoko and I were able to join the National Bone Marrow Registry at the game. We would encourage anyone reading this to consider joining too. It's very, very easy. Here is a link to learn more about it: http://www.marrow.org/ Who knows, maybe some of us may be called upon to save someone's life!

Back At It

2009-01-23T16:32:00.000-08:00

Well Luke was taken off Cyclosporin today and he is cleared not only to go to school, but also to return to church! We are so excited for both opportunities. He looks really good. Feels good and is looking forward to getting back to near normal routines. There are still limitations on him like he cannot go into homes where there are pets. He cannot eat sushi, which he has been craving. He has to limit the intensity of his workouts. He cannot run very much. But these are all such small concessions in view of where he could be at this time and when compared to others that are much worse off. We are so very grateful for how God has moved to bring Luke so very far. We are grateful too for the friends we have made and the support we have shared and the blessings we know because of Luke's condition. "All things work together for good to those who love God and that are called according to His purpose" wrote the apostle Paul. I know that Luke's condition has brought about far more good than we would have ever dreamed. People, touched by Luke's story, have told us how they have renewed their faith in God, been inspired to push through tough times, recognized the peace of God, or learned the value of personal sacrifice. Of course our family has been profoundly changed over these last few months. As we stand here on the the downhill side of Luke's journey we not only dream of what might be, we rejoice in what has been. God has most definitely worked things together for good. Thanks once again for your prayers and support.

The plan will be for Luke to go for check ups every Friday, so I will be sending regular updates then.

January 15th Update

2009-01-15T10:55:00.000-08:00

Luke had a follow up visit earlier this week and his lab counts were through the roof. The lead doctor was very encouraged and took him off the anti-biotic/immune booster and cut back on some more of his meds. As of now it looks good for Luke to be back at school at semester which is week after next. He is feeling good and we are very hopeful and prayerful that he stays well and does not have to go back in the hospital again. But the possibility still looms. It's like Tomoko said to me last week, "I guess we are going to have to hold our breath for a full year". While holding our breath we will also be continually drawing encouragement and strength from God, our family, church, neighbors and friends. We are so very blessed to be going through this tough time with such great sources of support. From day one our community has been simply amazing. We are profoundly grateful!

Luke Is Home!

2009-01-09T18:56:00.001-08:00

Praise God! Luke is home. The doctors started treating him with strong anti-biotics and immune boosters. His ANC shot up to over 3,000 (it was just under 400 on Wednesday and should be at least 1,000). His WBCs were at 1.6 on Wed and it's 5.3 today! Wow! He called me around 1:30 to say he was coming home. It is so great when he's home. A cute thing happened this morning when I was on the computer and I heard Luke's 10 year old brother Noah in the hallway behind me whistling a tune and then singing, "Luke is coming home today! Luke is coming home today!". Thanks for your prayers in getting Luke improved and home. Please continue to pray for his complete and timely recovery

Good News But Not Home Yet

2009-01-08T21:55:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was really tough on us. Not knowing what is going on was brutal. All we knew on Wednesday was that the doctors were concerned about Luke's lowered counts AND the odd shape of the nutrifill cells in his system. We sensed that the news was potentially serious, but we were definitely in a fog. This morning the doctors admitted that they were acting paranoid, but would rather know for sure what might be going on rather than guess. The potential worst case scenario would be the discovery of a new condition or disease that could require another marrow transplant. Well the results from today's (Thurs. 1/8) test indicate that Luke does not have a new condition or disease. The doctors are almost certain that what is going on in him is from a virus. They are beginning to treat that with heavier antibiotics and they plan to send Luke home tomorrow. There is one last test result on his bone celluarity that is due in tomorrow and that will give a very clear picture into Luke's progress.

Luke got a little sick today from the "knock you out" medicine, but he is in very good spirits this afternoon. You might be surprised how much he enjoys being at the hospital. God has used Luke to be a support and encouragement to patients, families and even medical staff. So when you pray for Luke, please also pray that God would use him to accomplish what he feels like he's there for - to be a support for others. Thanks again for your prayers!!!

New Tests

2009-01-07T18:31:00.000-08:00

So Luke is still in hospital for at least one more day. His counts came up a little today, but the medical team is a little concerned about the potentially odd shape of the nutrifils (worker bee cells in his bone marrow), so they are going to take a sample of his marrow out tomorrow to get a better look at what is going on. Luke feels fine. He's in good spirits and he's not worried at all. It's weird, because I think his mother and I are more worried than when all of this first came down. He had to remind me that he is not sick enough to be in NICU and that is a good sign. I have to remind myself and Tomoko of Philippians 4:6-7 - "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." and continually, over and over turn Luke and his health over to the Lord. Thank you for joining us in praying for his recovery and health!

Still There

2009-01-06T21:16:00.000-08:00

We and Luke's doctors fully expected him to come home today (Tuesday 1/6). After his labs came in the doctors are keeping him for at least one more day because Luke's counts dropped pretty substantially. Nobody knows exactly what is going on at this point. So much of what goes on with bone marrow is a mystery. Of course God knows and we continue to rely on His good graces and powerful intervention into Luke's situation. Luke and I spoke today and he says he feels fine just a little head achy and tired. but overall he is well. We will know more tomorrow after a new set of labs goes through. Thank you for your prayers!

Luke's in the Hospital

2009-01-03T22:07:00.000-08:00

When we left the hospital in November a nurse told us that it was likely Luke would be back in the hospital for some infection of some sort. Well, she knew what she was talking about. Luke went to Timmarre's funeral today (Saturday 1/3/09) and around mid-day he started feeling hot, feverish and weak. Tomoko called CHOC and they had her bring Luke to ER. They gave him some fluids and antibiotics. I just got off of the phone with him and he's feeling better already. It looks like he will check into CHOC for at least for the night.

These are those tough days that we anticipated might still crop up. It's so hard to recognize that Luke's immune system is still compromised. He looks and feels so good (most of the time), but the fact is that he is very vulnerable to infection. Hopefully, this passes quick. Hopefully, it's a chance for his body to grow even stronger as it fights off whatever is going on inside him. We appreciate your continued prayers for Luke's recovery.

WISHING ALL A BLESSED CHRISTMAS!

2008-12-24T15:39:00.000-08:00

On behalf of Luke and our family, I'd like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. It has been an amazing year for us. The Lord has enriched our lives with new friends and has enhanced our existing relationships even deeper. We thank everyone for going through this journey with us. We couldn't have done it without you. Our gratitude and appreciation goes beyond words. We are truly humbled how God has given us the gift of life - the best present ever. May this Christmas season touch your hearts and lives in a special way as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior.

Merry Christmas, Everyone! We love you all so much!

In His love and grace,

Tomoko

"Then the angel said to them, Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord."
Luke 2:10&11

In Loving Memory of Timmaree Hicks

2008-12-21T17:50:00.001-08:00

Please pray for the Hicks family. Their beloved, ten year old daughter Timmarre, joined Christ this morning. They are a wonderful family that was at CHOC and I was blessed to get to know them. Timmaree had a tumor that attacks the nervous system and can spread everywhere, a common form of cancer found in kids. Towards the end, her eyes became sensitive and she could no longer see. Now she can. Though this is a very big and tragic loss a lot of good came out of this too. Beautiful Timmarree no longer has to suffer through the troubles and sins of the world. She gets to live in eternal peace, love, and happiness with Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. We will miss her very very much but also smile on the fact that she is in a happier and better place.

In Love,
Luke Gane #55

Curve Ball

2008-12-19T09:13:00.001-08:00

The Fox Sports piece with Luke is being changed to tonight (Friday) at half time of the De LaSalle vs. Centennial, which begins at 8pm. Sounds like a fun one to me and Luke. Check it out if you are able.

This Saturday Night

2008-12-17T21:48:00.000-08:00

The past week has sure been a lot different. Luke has been able to eat some of his favorite food. He has been able to hang out a little more with friends. He freely went to the Edison football banquet for the entire night, got to eat all the food and did not wear his mask. It was funny, some people walked by him 2 or 3 times before recognizing him. All of these new freedoms seem to be making a difference in his energy and enthusiasm too. About the only problem he seems to be having is some swelling in his feet and ankles, but overall, he's doing really well and his progress remains steady.

Today at lunch I took a call from Pat McBride, the producer who put the Fox Sports piece together in October. He called to tell me that they are going to show that piece again on Saturday during the half time portion of the Pac 5 Championship game between Long Beach Poly and Grant High School. Following that, Luke will be featured live to provide an update on his progress. It should be fun! The game will be on Fox Sports Prime Ticket at 8 p.m. and Luke will be on at half time, which should be around 9 p.m. (I imagine it will air on Fox Sports in Nor. Cal too as Grant is from Sacramento). We do not know anything else at this time, but if news changes we will be sure to let you know.

Personally, I am looking forward to taking Luke to the Pac 5 Championship so he can gain insights on what being there as a team is all about. I know that more than anything, he wants to help Edison get there next year! Whether he plays or not, his dream is to see Edison win a Pac 5 Championship in 2009. We will be using this Saturday's game to help engrave the vision for that quest even deeper into Luke's understanding, which will be yet another lesson in the pile of lessons we are taking away from this experience with aplastic anemia and a bone marrow transplant. Through it all we want to make sure God receives all the glory. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 says, "For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." This life is temporary and so are its complications, suffering and pain. The temporary difficulties of life serve a grand purpose - they direct us to the eternal. God uses things we see like aplastic anemia to direct us to the more vital issues of our soul. Looking at things that are not seen (God, His love, His forgiveness, heaven) is a matter of faith. It is our family's prayer that Luke's hardship will direct others to those eternal issues. We know that we cannot make it in this life without an eternal perspective that is rooted in faith and resting in the hope that at the end of it all - God is there! May His richest blessing be yours this Christmas and always!

Major Milestone

2008-12-11T08:02:00.000-08:00

Luke is so very excited. Tomorrow is day 100! This is a major milestone. He will no longer have to wear his mask except in very crowded places. He can go outside without a mask and most of all he gets to eat real food. He is looking forward to being able to eat fresh fruits and vegetables, which might sound weird, but after 3 months of this anti-bacteria diet, he's definitely ready for some good food. He wants to go to Wendy's for lunch and we'll probably hit Stone Fire Grill for dinner. Very soon we are going to take Luke out to a nice steak dinner. It's amazing to be at this point. Just 4 months ago Luke was not well at all. Now he's progressing toward complete health. He and I were at the doctors last Friday and we were encouraged to be told that their goal is to get Luke back to football next year.

People will ask how Luke is doing and because he looks and feels so good it's hard to explain clearly. One way to understand his slow progress is like this: Imagine that a soda factory exploded and nearly burned to the ground. The company decided to rebuild. They brought in all new materials and began construction. After a few months the first thing that would appear are the exterior walls. From the outside the soda factory would look really good, but on the inside there would still be lots and lots of work to get done before the soda factory would become fully functional. The entire project would take about one year to complete. That is like what is going on with Luke. On the outside he looks very healthy, but on the inside there is much more work to accomplish. Our doctor explained that the bone marrow transplant is taking hold AND it will take time for it to work up to full production levels. Medically, the next steps in Luke's treatment are to slowly back off on the medication he is taking to allow his bone marrow to produce cells completely on its own. If he continues to improve, Luke will be in school at semester.

Our prayers are being answered. We are not living one of those instant miracles, but we are experiencing God's touch everyday. We are so very blessed and so very grateful to be able to "casting all your care upon Him because He cares for you".

PRAY FOR PRINCESS BELLA

2008-12-04T07:40:00.000-08:00

I, and the Alcala family just found out tonight that Isabella, a two year old girl diagnosed with a form of leukemia (currently at CHOC), just got diagnosed with another form of cancer called secondary lymphoma. It's not looking pretty right now. I am having a tough time handling it myself and I can't even imagine what Summer and Jorge (Bella's parents) are going through right now. I just ask a favor that all of you pray your hearts out for this princess. She means so much to so many and we all can't bare to lose her.

I YOU ISABELLA!! <333

love,
Luke Gane #55

Little By Little

2008-12-02T09:36:00.000-08:00

Luke went running outside last night! He's been dying to be able to be outside and now he is free to do so with the mask on. He will be able to go to the football team banquet. Noah got his wish from the doctors after they said it was OK for us to set up our artificial Christmas tree at home. Luke is on track to be mostly free from restrictions on day 100 (December 11) and to be back in school at semester. His counts continue to do nicely and he feels great. He will continuing taking serious medication for several more weeks and we have to still be careful to keep him away from illness. We are very encouraged by the progress and still remain respectful of his restrictions.

I read this verse today: "In my distress I cried to the Lord and He heard me." (Psalm 120:1). It is so great a comfort to know that when we go to God in prayer He hears. The bloody nose, the ambulance ride to CHOC, the testing, diagnosis, treatment and recovery put us in distress. There were some sketchy days there for Luke, but God has seen fit to bring him through to the better days we are seeing now. We praise Him for how much he has blessed Luke and our family. I saw an Edison student yesterday with a Pray for Luke shirt on and it made me so grateful for all the prayers that continue to go up for Luke. It's not the praying alone though that bless us, it's the knowledge that our God hears! Please continue to pray that Luke will be back in action full force and ahead of schedule. Thanks!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-25T16:24:00.000-08:00

Luke and Jacob are going to be on the KTLA Morning Show Thanksgiving Morning. As of now we are told the interview is going to be on around 9.30 a.m.. We are excited about the opportunity. Check it out if you get the chance. Please pray for smooth travel and for the boys to represent well.

Not So Fast

2008-11-25T15:54:00.000-08:00

Here I am all excited about how good Luke's counts are and then it hit me - He's on cyclosporin (sp?), the immune booster, so he's not really on his own when it comes to these great numbers we keep seeing. It's still all good news. The doctors are very pleased with his progress, but it's just another indicator that he's not as well as he may look or feel. This is frustrating for him of course. He gets major cabin fever. He's so ready to get back to normal activity. Luke was even asking to get subbed into the games we attended.

As a family and as individuals we are learning a lot through Luke's condition. We have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. We feel so blessed everyday. Luke keeps using the word "overwhelmed". People have reached out in such amazing ways and they continue to do so. We went to the Servite playoff game last Friday. We wanted to show respect and gratitude to a football team and school that have reached out to Luke and our family in astounding ways. We were overwhelmed again by the kindness and class of Servite. Serveral staff, administrators, coaches, and players came up to Luke to shake his hand and let him know that they were praying for him and hope to see him back next year. (Check this link for a short story: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/varsitytimesinsider/2008/11/football-serv-1.html) Servite is definitely a classy organization. Our utmost thanks go out to the Friars!

No school or team could make us more proud than our own Edison Chargers. We love our school. We love our team. We are proud to be Chargers! Luke and our family plan on enjoying a nice Thanksgiving together on Thursday. God has blessed us so very much. No matter what has happened or might happen we continue to rest in the hands of an Almighty God who loves us and cares for us. May His richest blessings be yours this week and always! Enjoy your Thanksgiving!

A Great Day!

2008-11-21T16:26:00.000-08:00

Today was a great day. It's really more about Jacob than it is about Luke. Over 1,000 students in OC from 1st to 6th grade entered an essay contest at Stone Fire Grill. The essay theme: "Why are you thankful?" was answered by Jacob, Luke's youngest brother, like this:

The Miracle
by Jacob Gane

I'm thankful for my bone marrow! You might ask, "Why bone marrow?" It's because it saved my brother's life! After school my dad said, "Luke has a disease called aplastic anemia. It's when you have low platelets, and bone marrow. You twins are the brothers who match. Who wants to give the bone marrow transplant?" I raised my hand as fast as I could. "I do! I do!" I said. "Are you sure?" my dad asked. "Yes! Yes!" I said. The TV station FSN came to interview my family because Luke plays football for Edison. On September 2, 2008, the day of the bone marrow transplant, I was excited, but scared. I was the very definition of fear, but I managed to do it. The worse thing is they drilled a hole into my back. I told my dad if it means saving my brother I'd do it.

My brother was in the hospital for almost three months. Now he is home after going through chemo and on the road to recovery. I am very glad that the bone marrow transplant was successful. Now you know the answer to your question,
"Why bone marrow?"

Jacob was one of 15 finalist, who attended a free lunch today at Stone Fire Grill in Fountain Valley. All the finalists read their essays in the hopes of being one of three winners. The prizes were U.S. savings bonds in the amount of $250, $500 or $1,000 for the top three places. All of the kids read incredibly well. There were great messages from each. Our school, Liberty Christian had 3 student finalists!!! In the end Jacob ended up being the grand prize winner!!! We cannot believe it. What a day! Luke was able to attend. KOCE and the Register were there interviewing us all. We really wanted to fit in proper thanks to everyone, but there was no good way. There's too many of you!!! We are so very, very thankful.

The OC Register has already posted an article and photos online:
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/jacob-brother-luke-2237024-bone-huntington

I am told that tonight at 6:30 on local KOCE the Real Orange will be broadcasting a story on the event.
There is a chance we will be on a morning news show on Thanksgiving. We'll let you know if that comes together.

Here are some photos that I and Tomoko took:

2008-11-19T08:28:00.000-08:00

This Edison Charger team did not even come close to letting me down. I love all of you guys very much and could not be more proud. You guys had a great season and with all of the goals you accomplished you should be proud of yourselves. Do not be sorry for anything. I did not do anything, God saved my life, I just happened to get the condition. I am proud to be a part of this team and I am glad I was able to play with the seniors over the spring and most of the summer. I also look forward to playing with the rest of the team this following season. "Yesterday was history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present." - Oogway (turtle from Kung Fu Panda).

Proud to be a Charger,
Luke Gane #55

Slow But Sure

2008-11-13T17:21:00.001-08:00

Luke continues to progress little by little. I asked him to describe how he feels and he says, "Great!". But then I remind him of how tired he was Saturday after going to the game or how much less weight he lifts and how fatigued he gets after a work out and he said that stamina and strength are his two biggest challenges right now. But he is getting stronger little by little, day by day, slow but sure. We are so encouraged by his progress. He is doing well with school work too. He got a break on Tuesday. After the teacher has been at the house for two hours, Luke usually gets right on his home work to get it over with. I know that part of His motivation is to get done in time to watch Jon and Kate Plus 8. He absolutely loves that show and has got the entire family hooked on it. We love the way that big family operates and gets along. We also love their family mission statement: "Dedicated to telling others about God's Love." Though the Gane's do not have that printed as a Mission Statement, that is certainly one of our family commitments as well. I was once again told by somebody how people are being touched by Luke's story, the updates and the blog. I let Luke know about the many times this has happened and it brought a big smile to his face. He knows that there is a greater purpose for this trial. He knows that what looks like evil can be used by God for good. We feel abundantly blessed by how well Luke is doing. We go to CHOC and see all variety of families going through any variety of tough, tough issues and we are so grateful that Luke's condition has turned out so well to this point.

We know that God's presence and care has been beautifully presented to us through so many different avenues, but mostly by faith in knowing that He is good and that He cares. We continue to rely on that goodness and care and we continue to see and feel it through so many of you that are lifting us up! Thanks again!!!

Luke At The Bell Game

2008-11-08T18:44:00.000-08:00

Last night was amazing! Luke was able to go to what is the biggest game of our year outside of playoffs- The Battle for the Bell, Edison vs. Fountain Valley. It is a major cross town rivalry and Luke was there. We sat on a far end of the field away from the crowds and as isolated as possible. It was a very intense game. Edison went down 7-0 and our offense had not been moving the ball for 3 quarters. That all changed when we were able to sustain a drive and get into scoring position. Well Luke could not help himself, he ran down the stairs to field level in the end zone and a few plays later, we tied the game.

He repeated this un-authorized trek to the end zone the next time Edison scored to seal a 14-7 victory. Upon game's end Luke was on the field hugging his fellow teammates and coaches. The next thing you know he is hoisted up on two player's shoulders and being cheered on by the crowd. It was quite a scene! There is a picture attached and if you want to read and see more pics or vids about the game go to:

http://www.ocvarsity.com/
http://www.ocvarsity.com/articles/edison-gane-white-2222549-friday-luke
http://www.ocvarsity.com/articles/edison-players-play-2222491-rosterid-valley

Paying The Price

2008-11-05T21:20:00.001-08:00

Luke is incredibly sore today -- and loving it. He got to work out at Edison yesterday. He's definitely paying the price though. I barely tapped him on the shoulder and he grimaced fiercely and brushed me away. He has not tested his strength much for almost three months now and his lifting yesterday took its toll. Still, it is so very cool that he is determined to get after it in the weight room! We got to talk a little with Coach White and Coach Schmitt, who stopped by and that was great. Our hope and plan is to get in there two times a week for now. Luke is very dedicated to the effort required to get healthy and to return to playing Charger football next season.

We are very excited to report that Luke will be at the Edison vs. Fountain Valley Battle for the Bell this Friday. Luke is so fired-up to be able to go. This was a wish of this from the beginning of his ordeal. We are so grateful he gets to go. He has to be very incognito as he is not allowed to be around crowds of people. At this point we are required to arrive extremely early, sit in the coach's booth and leave extremely late. No matter what, it's going to be a great night watching the boys battle for the bell!

Our family continues to marvel at how well Luke is doing. So much of his progress is due to the love and support of so many of you that read the blog, pray, offer gracious gifts and service and show such wondrous kindnesses. GRACE - is getting what you do not deserve. We remain so very grateful and overwhelmed by the grace of God which is pouring out on our lives. I am quite confident we do not deserve every bit of the good things that have come our way over these last several weeks. We have received so very much from our Lord --- our family, friends, church, neighbors, Edison High School, community and most of all God's love and forgiveness are all blatant evidences of God's grace in our lives. We sit in awe and wonder to be so very, very blessed. Our prayer is that God's grace will flood your lives too!

MEMO: 55? -- A few people have asked me why we are praying for #55 when number 13 and 33 are all over the web page. 55 is Luke's varsity number this year. 33 and 13 were his JV and Varsity numbers from last season, so by his request we went with 55 on the stickers.

2008-10-31T16:07:00.000-07:00

Tomoko reported to me that Luke's doctor's visit today went very well. He does have a slight sinus infection, but that is not a grand concern. We received some great news: He can work out with weights now. He can even go to EHS weight room in the day time if nobody else is in there. If that can't work, we'll get him in at Liberty Christian. He can't strength train so much as condition train, but that is still great progress. Luke about went through the roof with excitement when the doctor told him that he is free to go to mid-week matinee movies in near empty theaters. Right now he and Tomoko are watching Eagle Eye. So some great things are happening and we are very excited about how abundantly God is blessing!

Have a Good Halloween

2008-10-31T10:41:00.000-07:00

We want to wish everyone a safe and enjoyable Halloween.
Luke will be going up to CHOC tonight to pass out candy on the third floor. I am pretty sure he's going as an Edison Football player. He's really looking forward to it.

Pretty cool how Edison scored 55 points last night. #55 was thrilled. Good job boys!

It's 7:30 a.m. and Luke is waking up to go to the CHOC clinic and get more blood work done.
We anticipate good news. I will send another update when we get some results.

Holding Steady

2008-10-29T19:42:00.000-07:00

Luke is home and doing well. His cough seems to be lessening. We found an awesome recumbent bike on Craig's List and he is training on the bike and doing an ab work out daily. His next challenge is working out more with the resistance bands and hopefully moving to weights soon. He did not have to go to CHOC Clinic yet. His next visit is Friday, so it looks like he will be only having to go once a week, which is great news!

Luke is taking classes from home. He actually started doing some studying while in the hospital. Beth, a home school teacher from Edison comes by the house twice a week to teach Luke and then he has a bunch of reading, work sheets, reports and studying for tests to get done. He is taking math, history and English. He is missing PE (football), Physics and Spanish 3. Luke would really like to be back at school, but the home schooling thing is working out nicely and we are grateful for the opportunity. Other than exercise and school, Luke will spend time on the computer and in front of the TV.

It is almost impossible to be clear on markers for progress and freedom. The doctors maintain that 100 days after transplant is the next significant milestone. It's at this point that Luke should be able to eat a little more normal and be out and about a little more. The next marker after that is the Edison semester break. That's when Luke should be back to school. Both the 100th day and semester are during cold and flu season, so we will have to wait and see. As I understand it the next marker after those two is the one year point. One year from transplant is when Luke should be completely free to resume a mostly normal life. There will be an additional year of monitoring, which I would guess means one or two trips to the clinic per month. We are getting used to the foggy information that comes from the doctors. I believe they are cautious in defining markers because they cannot fully anticipate recovery from one patient to the next.

This entire situation has caused us to focus on the apostle Paul's instruction to, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7). We continue to fight our anxiety and we appreciate you joining us in that fight by offering your prayers and encouragement. Our family most definitely, is experiencing the peace of God which passes all understanding. Our prayer is that you would as well!

Moving Along

2008-10-24T16:31:00.001-07:00

Monday was a great day. Luke went to the CHOC clinic for blood work in the morning. Luke and his mom had a nice five hours in the very lightly populated confines of Main Place Mall as they awaited results at 3:20. The results were very good. Luke is ahead of pace on all counts except hemoglobin, which is right on target. His WBCs are 3.3 (should be 4.5). ANC was 1600 (1,000 or above is normal) and Platelets were at 185 (above 150 is normal). Remember, when he checked into CHOC Luke's platelets were at 7!!!! He is testing again today and if the counts stay high that will mean only one trip to the clinic a week instead of two. That's the good news. The concern right now is this nagging cough he has. At this moment (2:45 p.m.) he is at Hoag Hospital getting chest X-rays. The doctors feel fairly certain that he has a virus of some kind. Now, when Luke was getting ready to leave the hospital last Thursday, a nurse told Tomoko that we can expect him to return to the CHOC at some point because of an illness. Hopefully, this is not that time already, but it might be.

People keep asking if visitors are allowed by to see Luke. Yes, you are allowed to come by IF you are in good health and have not been by anyone who has been ill. Also anyone who has received an inoculation must not be near Luke within 5 weeks of that shot. This includes flu shots. Luke is grateful for visitors and it's always a good idea to call him before coming over just to make sure he is not at the doctors or otherwise occupied.

FLASH: Tomoko just called to tell me results from today's labs: WBCs are at 3.8. ANC - 2432. Hemoglobin - 10.6 (down from 11.7, so that's a slight concern). Platelets - 188. He is down on a couple other counts, but still steady. We still covet your prayers for Luke's healing and recovery. We feel just as reliant on an all powerful and loving God to look after Luke's health. Thanks for your prayers!

Homecoming Week

2008-10-17T12:43:00.000-07:00

It truly is homecoming week at Edison and at the Gane home. Luke was awed by how much can change in just two months. He arrived home last night a little after 7pm! Noah and Jacob screamed "Yay!" when they heard Luke was coming home. They are so glad to have their big brother home to help calm down their dad. A few friends dropped by and it was just very, very nice to have him home. It's a little hard for him to be home because now he is closer in proximity to normal, but still several weeks away from being able to live normal. We are confident he will adjust well though. The doctors are still telling us to expect Luke's return to school to be at semester. He will gain certain freedoms between now and then, but we don't know exactly how much or when.
Though things are not nearly as dire as when he first was diagnosed, we remain completely dependent on our great and loving God to see us through. Thanks for your continued prayers.

The Very Latest On Luke

2008-10-15T08:19:00.000-07:00

The twins and I just returned from CHOC. Luke had been in his room for about 10 minutes following central line removal and recovery. Dr. Nugent and team members were in the room giving the update. She said #55 is breaking all kinds of records. He is going home on day 44 after bone marrow transplant - THAT IS THURSDAY, tomorow!!! He is doing very well. Tomoko told me today that his platelets were at 84. When he went into CHOC they were at 7! Normal is about 150. His ANC is still above 900 and his wbc's continue to increase slowly. I heard today that the slowest to increase is the RBCs, so we are a little less troubled by the slow increase there. Things are going very well.

We are very excited that Luke is coming home. He is a little apprehensive. He illustrated that feeling perfectly by saying it's kinda like leaving summer camp. You make friends and share experiences with people in special ways, which are significant, but end up being just a blip on your line of history. I know he is also concerned about his anxiety to go out and be with friends and do normal things while home compared to being in the confines of a hospital. We all are going to have to help him fight through that and be careful not to entice him away from doctor's orders in any way.

This is a major step in Luke's progress, but the ordeal is not over. There are many milestones to cross over the next year to make sure that Luke has a full and complete recovery. He even will be getting a full set of inoculations. Luke will be home for quite a few weeks. The doctors still tell us to not expect him to be back at school until next semester. He will be treading the path to the CHOC clinic over and over. If he gets a cold or flu that could be a major set back. Though it is not as dire as when we first went into CHOC, Luke is still fragile and we still very, very much covet your prayers! Today, we rejoice that he is coming home!

Latest on Luke

2008-10-13T15:10:00.000-07:00

Luke is doing very well. His ANC is up over 900 for the last few days. His white blood cells are eeeking up. For some weird reason his red blood cells can not make it over the 8 range. The doctors are not overly concerned about it, but Tomoko and I are hopeful that the RBC count gets moving upward. Luke remains encouraged and on the road to coming home. Tomorrow is a huge day - he will be getting the central line removed. A central line is an IV type device installed into one's chest and into one of the main arteries of the heart. It is somewhat uncomfortable, but the thing that's been real tough about it lately is Luke is not free to work out. Working out causes him to sweat and when he sweats the dressing on the central line needs to be changed, which is very uncomfortable. All that changes tomorrow. Removing the central line is one step closer to Luke coming home. We have been leaning toward him being home on Thursday, BUT with all the dirt and smoke in the air (Santa Ana Wind season), he may have to remain in the hospital a few more days. We hope to hear some news about all of that sometime later today.

We remain hopeful that Luke will have a miraculous and speedy recovery. We feel blessed that his condition is improving and that in the grand scheme of life or in view of other potential ailments, Luke is doing so very, very well. We are definitely blessed! A good friend sent me a verse that applies well to our situation: "Let all who run to You for protection always sing joyful songs. Provide shelter for those who truly love You and let them rejoice" (Psalm 5:11-12). We are most definitely busy running to God for protection and we have experienced joy in the midst of His shelter. We continue to rejoice not only in Luke's progress and hoped for recovery, but also in the care and kindness he and our family have received these last several weeks.

Birthday

2008-10-08T12:12:00.001-07:00

FYI, it's Luke's birthday today! Leave a comment to this post and wish him a happy birthday! He would love your well wishes, but he's a little wiped out for visitors. Call Jim or Tomoko before you visit to see how he is!

A Little Bit Of Freedom

2008-10-07T22:08:00.000-07:00

Luke is doing very well. His WBCs were up to 2.0 Monday and dropped to 1.8 today. His ANC is up over 500 for the third day in a row! (By the way, normal ANC is 1000, not 500 like I wrote last week). He was off IV and monitors, but will be back on IV from 10pm to 10am because some other count is not quite right. Overall, Luke is doing very, very well. He texted me today, "It's hotter than heck out here and the new sunglasses are working great." Meaning?: He got to go outside! He also commented that the sun was very hot on his head and I told him he can relate to me now. We laughed! So Luke was out of isolation for a little bit today. How cool is that?! We are at a kinda weird time because we do not know exactly what to expect or when to expect it. It does look like Luke will be able to come home before 100 days, BUT we still do not know when. If I had to guess, I would say some time next week, but that could easily change to be the week after. Although we are looking forward to Luke coming home, nobody in the Gane family is anxious for him to leave the hospital. We are very content to let him stay there as long as necessary. Today, I was thinking how we pray at home often for God to "keep us from harm and evil and keep harm and evil away from us". I was wondering, "God, how did you answer that prayer with Luke?" and it hit me - harm is relative and graded. Sure it could be argued that Luke has been harmed. I would argue that he has been spared harm. Of all the worst case scenarios concerning Luke's condition, he has been spared quite a bit. We discovered the ailment without serious incident. A prolonged bloody nose is bad, but it's not that bad. The entire bone marrow transplant process has been very seamless and easy. My neighbor's sister had aplastic anemia and had to wait a full year before a marrow match was found for her (she's 100% now). We could be facing this ordeal without top notch medical care like we receive at CHOC. We could be mostly alone, but we are surrounded by wonderful, caring, loving, encouraging and generous family, friends, neighbors and church!!!! As I have said before - we see God's protection and care through all of our days and we are constantly finding Him just like David did in Psalm 116:5 - "Gracious is the Lord and righteous; Yes, our God is merciful." We know we will continue to experience Him as such and we continue to pray that those who are sharing this with us will as well. God bless you from the Gane family!

Pray for Mikey

2008-10-04T08:29:00.001-07:00

Men,

CONGRATULATIONS on the huge win Chargers!!! I wanted to scream and yell and cheer in my room but I couldn't because I didn't want to scare my nurses. Also, as we all know we aren't the most healthy team. Be sure to pray for your teammates and especially our fallen soldier. Pray extra for our boy superman a.k.a. Mikey Rivera. He unfortunately got a concussion in the game tonight against Mater Dei and is being transferred over to CHOC. Hopefully I get a cool, temporary neighbor, but very temporary. WE LOVE YOU SUPERMAN.

PRAY FOR MIKEY!!!! NUMBER 2!!!

Proud to be a Charger,

Luke #55

LAST T-SHIRT ORDER

2008-10-03T07:35:00.000-07:00

We will be putting in one final T-shirt order, so if you would like one, now is your chance! What a blessing to have so many people want to support the Gane Family! The T-shirts sizes will be Youth small & medium, and Adult small, medium, large, XL & 2XL, and all are $10 each. The youth large is the same size as the adult small. We will only have the black shirts available for this order. If you would like to order, please do so by Sunday, October 5th, by emailing bfisherhb@yahoo.com with your name, telephone number & sizes, unless you've already given an order to Kathi or Denise. Thank you!

Prime Ticket Video

2008-10-01T18:24:00.000-07:00

Answers

2008-10-01T11:44:00.000-07:00

I saw Luke last night and it was exactly like hanging out at home. He was very comfortable, happy, fun and exuberant. He's eating a lot and weighs 208lbs, so that's going well. He worked out pretty hard yesterday and he's getting stronger each week. He's even doing school work, so you know he's feeling better. We had a great time. He and Tomoko got to see the half time portion of the FSN Prime Ticket feature for the first time. They loved it! Pat McBride and the entire team at FSN did an amazing job. Many thanks to them for that effort. We are trying to get a post of that video to the website soon, so be watching for that.

Here are answers to some of the questions being asked about Luke's
progress:

Q: Is the bone marrow taking?
A: To this point, yes. The bone marrow is engrafting and there are no signs of donor/host rejection at this time.

Q: What are his counts?
A: His white blood cell count is at 1.0. Normal would be between 10 and 14.
-ANC (a formula measuring cell production) is at 200. It will go up and down day to day. Normal is 500.
-Platelets are at 31 and normal is 140 (he gets transfused if they go below 20).

Q: When is Luke coming home?
A: We do not know. He is progressing nicely and it looks like he will not have to stay the full 100 days, but we do not have a clear expectation of him coming home very soon. When the doctors are talking days instead of weeks, we will begin preparing.

Q: What are boundaries when Luke is home?
A: We do not know all of them yet, but he will be allowed guests under the same type of rules at the hospital (healthy, not been around ill people, clean hands). He will be home for several weeks. We have been told that he should not expect to be in school until second semester. We hope he can make it to a game this season. The doctors are going to be very cautious since Luke's getting out at the start of cold/flu season.

Q: Will Luke be able to play football next season?
A: That certainly is our hope and prayer. We will be working hard to make that happen and hopefully, his body cooperates. It is way too early to tell how possible that is. Personally, I would put it at 50/50 at this time.

While things will be sketchy to some degree for the next year or so, we are encouraged and hopeful. Your prayers, concern, support and love is all very much appreciated. It makes a tremendous difference!

2008-09-29T20:56:00.001-07:00

On Friday night Edison played Servite and the game was dedicated to Luke by both teams. Servite piled on an additional bunch of grace and kindness along side so much that we have already received from so many friends, family and neighbors in the community. People were sending Luke text updates and calls about the game highlights and about the efforts of Servite like a very cool game program cover design, numerous announcements about Luke and the program sales efforts and then the two teams praying after the game. Add to that an article in Friday's OC Register and the wonderful feature piece by Fox Sports and it all overcame Luke to where he sent me this text after the game: "All of this is so overwhelming. I don't deserve it." And it's true. We do not deserve it. But that's how grace works. Grace is getting what you do not deserve. To this point, so much has worked out for beauty and good and kindness and love and peace and encouragement and friendship and healing and comfort and care. Today Luke is on the mend. His WBC is at 1.0 (should be 10-14) and his ANC Saturday was at 263 (should be 500), but it went down a little yesterday. We do not know what the future holds. We are hopeful that Luke will be healthy and normal, but there is no guarantee to this point. We pray that life can return to normal before too long. We hope Luke can do the things he loves, like play football. But really, all of those things are not as important to us as the hope that God can use our difficulty to draw people to Himself in very real and personal ways. "But God demonstrates His own love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). God's enthusiastic love for mankind did not cease in its intensity at the cross. God's loving energy calls out to people every minute of every day. Much like the doctors and nurses at CHOC who pour out care constantly in order to bring physical health to those young patients they care for, God is busy drawing people to Himself. He does it at churches, in the Bible, and through co-workers, neighbors, friends and even blogs of sick high school kids. We covet the prayers of everyone willing to do so. We are grateful for allllllll the beautiful acts of kindness that have come our way. Please know that each one in our family are praying for you. We are praying that God blesses you and that much like us, you are discovering God and His grace in ways like never before even in the middle of whatever it is you might be going through. And once again I must say to so many of you that have blessed us so very much - Thank you!

Awesome Video

2008-09-29T15:07:00.000-07:00

Click on the link below to see one a really cool video about the Edison V. Servite game featuring a story about Luke:

http://www.ocvarsity.com/video/index.php?bcpid=1126062229&bclid=1134010117&bctid=1823771613

To My Edison Brothers

2008-09-27T09:16:00.000-07:00

Men (Players and Coaches),

I am still a part of this team so I am still a part of all of our wins and all of our losses. "Life is a game of inches, so is football." - Al Pacino. This is just a humbling inch we all have to overcome so that we can get prepared and focused for next week. Short term memory loss, boys. I honestly believe we can come together as a team more. We need to come together as a team and trust the guy next to us, no matter who it is. This is just a little thing, there is still a whole season left to play. No matter if we win or lose as long as you, individually, can go home and look in the mirror and be proud of the face staring back, then you did your job. If we all do our jobs as a team, and we are all our proud of the man staring back in the mirror then nobody can ask for more. Always give 100% effort 100% of the time, leave it all on the field, let nothing stand in your way, and always have fun. Don't let this discourage any of you, let it be a spark to fire you all up for next week. I am so proud and overwhelmed by every single one of you guys. God has blessed me so much. I haven't seen the game yet but I feel you guys poured out your hearts into the game, and I wish I was there to do it along with you guys. I love you guys and as a team we are all going to overcome this and come out of this stronger than we were before. We are Edison Chargers!

Proud to be a Charger,

Luke #55

Thank you to Servite

2008-09-27T09:00:00.000-07:00

On behalf of my family, I would like to thank all of you for the overwhelming grace and generosity you have given us. I know you are supposed to be our rivals, but after experiencing your incredible support, I now know rivalry is only on the field. My family and I were blown away by your random acts of kindness and are still stunned by it. We appreciate each and every one of you. You expressed the true definition of pure class and what it means to be Christ-like. Thank you! I'll see you next year on the field.

Proud to be a Charger,

Luke Gane #55

9/24/08

2008-09-24T22:12:00.000-07:00

Luke is doing well. The doctors do not seem concerned or disappointed with his progress, so I guess it's status quo. His WBC count is up another point to .6. He was looking at blood and platelet transfusion today and they are putting it off until tomorrow, which we take as good news. He is eating a good one to two meals a day and a bunch of snacks too. He is being weaned off of the IV nutrition. That's all I know for now.

As you may know, Tomoko is living at the hospital and doing a marvelous job managing life up there with Luke. I am home "managing" this end of life. One of the consequences of that is mis-communication. Here I am making plans to go out this Saturday to Savannah and Tomoko had plans I actually knew about, and in true guy fashion then forgot about. So I am sorry to say that we will not be able to go to Savannah on Saturday, BUT we are planning to go next Saturday. Hopefully, we will see everybody at the football game on Friday. Go Chargers!

Awesome Opportunity!

2008-09-24T15:40:00.000-07:00

Servite will be selling programs this Friday for $10 each at the game (they have ordered 1000) with hopes of selling out so that they can split the profit with The Ganes! Talk about heart!! PLEASE make sure you buy a program at the game - EHS will also be helping Servite sell them! And any donation over and above the $10 will go directly to the Gane family! Game will be at Cerritos College 09/26 @ 7.30pm. The game will also be televised on FSN as the High School Game of the Week featuring an in-depth interview with Luke and his family….and Coach White too! Don't forget to set your TIVO or DVR Friday night at 10:30 pm, when the game will air, right after the Dodger game. If you have Time Warner Cable, the channel is 33. See you at the game!

Edison vs. Servite

2008-09-23T22:34:00.000-07:00

Luke is doing well today. Josh the twins and I went for a quick visit. He showed them how to play some Wii Fit and gave them each a turn. It was a lot of fun and it helps Luke get healthy again (Thanks EHS Volleyball families!!!). Matthew was at practice and may get his shot on the Wii Fit tomorrow. We have yet to hear any official word on how well his bone marrow is being accepted. We do know that it is producing positively and the doctors seem encouraged, yet they remain conservative in their assessments and that is just fine with us.

This Friday Edison plays Servite at Cerritos College. We are really looking forward to this awesome event. It's the game of the week on Prime Ticket. It should be quite a game! Servite will be fired up and determined after a very tough loss last Friday and Edison is looking to make it known that they are a championship contender. Fox Sports Prime Ticket is going to air the game on Friday, and it will be on tape delay. It's slotted to air after the Dodger game, and the producer of the segment on Luke told me to: "tell everyone to set their TIVO’s to record the game Friday night, on Fox Sports Prime Ticket.

We'll see you at the game! Go Chargers!!!

2008-09-23T08:38:00.001-07:00

C2C - raffle; one of 3 tables

Luke working out with power bands
3 of the awesome CHOC nurses -- Mo; Tas and Sarah

I was by to see Luke last night and he is looking even better. The white is beginning to come back to his eyes and his personality is so much like normal. He is still fatigued and weak, but he's working out with a physical therapist pretty much every day. He's eating too and that's nice. Luke seems to be through all that nasty illness associated with chemo-therapy. Additionally, there are no signs of rejection at this time. It's very nice to see him like that. We watched some Monday Night Football and the Chargers were dominant, so we enjoyed that quite a bit. He also told me that it was very fun to watch the DVD of last Friday's Edison football game and victory. Proud to be a Charger!!!!! Luke is definitely on the upswing, but it's more like an up-strain. His recovery happens at a very slow and gradual pace. His blood count numbers improve daily, and basically, his WBCs (white blood cells) go up about .1 a day. While he is progressing nicely, Luke is still fragile because of such low counts in blood cells. He continues to need transfusions. On that note: THANK YOU to all of you that have donated blood or platelets!!!! It's a huge help and the doctors are hoping that people with O positive blood will continue to donate both blood and platelets for Luke. They actually ordered direct donor program for both, so that is set up now at no charge. It 's tempting to think that Luke is going to be all the way well real soon. He seems soooooooooo much better!, and Tomoko and I have to remind ourselves that the original plan the doctors reported was a 100 day stay in the hospital. Now, it could be, he'll come home sooner, but that is the expectation that we operate with at this time. And that's fine with us. We have all the confidence and comfort possible at CHOC! This whole experience forces us to trust God, who is not surprised and who has provided that we have such great care both at CHOC and at home. We continue to take great strength from our faith, our family, our church home, neighbors, friends, Edison HS and community! You are all simply amazing.

It was so nice to be back at Coast 2 Coast on Saturday. We have not been there in a long while. We were all missing hockey quite a bit. Josh almost jumped through the glass he was so amped to play. We also were able to see a number of people we have not seen in a long time and catch up a little with them. It was a fun afternoon. The raffle was outstanding. We were very impressed with the prizes and with the organization of the effort. Tina and her crew were tremendous. And we even won a couple of prizes. It was quite a fun time! We are definitely blessed by the experience. While at C2C, I heard that the owners of Savannah Restaurant by the pier saw Luke's web page and were impacted by it, so they sent our family, Tina and the Fishers (blog creators) gift certificates. How cool is that?! We are going to try to go Saturday 9/27 at 5:30 if anyone would care to hang out, we'll see you there! They definitely deserve the business in our opinion. I also think you should get your hair done at DG Salon, order stickers from Nameplate, buy cool LRG clothes and root for Edison H.S., play Wii game systems with Wii Fit, play youth football at Huntington Beach Pop Warner, eat at, Lazy Dog Cafe, Oggi's, and Joey's Luperello's Pizza, use Jay's Catering and if if you don't already have a church, then check out CrossPoint. You might even root for Servite and Costa Mesa football when they are not playing Edison of course. It's great to be a part of this wonderful community!

Don't Forget The Hockey Fundraiser Today!

2008-09-20T08:33:00.000-07:00

Please Join Us For The

“FaceOff”

Fundraiser Raffle For Luke Gane

at Coast2Coast In-line Hockey Rink

5555 McFadden Ave (between Springdale & Graham) HB

Saturday, Sept 20, 2008

Raffle Tickets will be sold from 10:00 am-1:30 pm. Winners will be announced at 1:45 PM (Need not be present). All monies raised will be donated to the Gane Family for any unforeseen medical costs not covered by their insurance. Information on how to donate blood will be available. Thank you for all your support, thoughts & prayers!

Contact Tina Richardson @ richfonda1@yahoo.com or 714-654-1290 for event information. Please share with your friends that this is just a few items that we will be raffling off on Saturday at C2C and much more. $1 a ticket or 6 for $5.....I will be there from 8:30-till drawing time of 2:00pm. See you then and thank you again for supporting this event!

Some of the items at the raffle:
1) Coconut Kiss Basket
(1) Milk and Honey Basket
(2) "Skins" covers for Guitar Hero video game guitars. One is signed by all the graphic artists for the game. (donated from a friend who works for the company that develops the game)
(1) Autographed Baseball from Torii Hunter. Comes with Certificate of Authenticity.
(1) Autographed Bat from Vladimir Guerrerro. Comes with Certificate of Authenticity.
(3) Sets of 4-packs of tickets to the game on Sat 9/27; 2nd to last game of season
(1) 2 pack of tickets to the Angel game on 9/27, plus Angels baseball cap
(2) Oakely sunglasses
(1) Toy Basket
(1) Car detail basket
(3) ACTIVE Skateboard tees
(1) Pureology Beauty Basket
(1) $100 gift certificate for travel
(2) California Leash Hawaiian Purses
(1) Gift certificate for swim lessons
(1) Gift certificate for 2 hours of free tutoring
(3) Gift certificates for one on one fitness training
Local high school sweatshirts, Tour Tees, Hockey wheels/puck
and so much more!!!!!!!!!

2008-09-19T22:52:00.000-07:00

Luke is doing really, really well today and yesterday. He is eating quite a bit. He did the Wii Fit yesterday --- for an hour! His mom said he had the excited, joyful look of a person on a game show. A Fox Sports West news team was by to see Luke yesterday too. They are going to do a human interest story presentation during the Edison vs. Servite game of the week next Friday night. We'll post more info. about that as it come in. He said that was both fun and interesting. Also last night, his friends Nick and Brad plus Nick's little brother and mom came by and they brought him the full blown NFL San Diego Charger jersey with his name and number on it. It is so very radical. When I was with him today I was barely permitted to touch it as it hung neatly and brilliantly on the chair. I brought a friend of ours to the hospital today. Blake Davis is a close family friend. He is a college world series champion with Cal State Fullerton and currently plays in the minors for the Orioles. He's in town for short time and I think he came into Luke's room anticipating Luke to be a mess, but when we left he says, "He just seems normal". And it's true. Yesterday and today, I talked to good ol' Luke. He laughed at my bad jokes. He talked quite a bit and smiled a bunch too. He took an attack posture when I tried on his new jersey. While Blake and I were there, Noland, one of his physical therapists came in. Luke did some exercises in bed and more while standing. He is looking very determined and not near as worn out as just last week. It was such a good visit! We had a blast! You have probably at one time or another in one way or another heard the Bible verse that says, "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great is Your faithfulness." We have been right in the middle of a pretty crazy situation with Luke and aplastic anemia. And right in the middle of that is the mercy of God being poured out on us through a wide variety of ways like reports of prayers for Luke going up in North Carolina, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, etc.; kind words and encouragement being given often throughout each day, great, attentive and caring doctors, nurses and staff at CHOC, a treat for Luke and/or his brothers form cheer leaders, neighbors and friends, care packages from friends like LRG, unsolicited and very generous fund raising support and on and on we could go and go and go. And all of that goes a long way in proving that verse true in our lives. We continue to experience all of it in awe and wonder at God's great mercy and faithfulness and in an overwhelming sense of gratitude to each and everyone that offers support!

T-Shirt Orders Are In...

2008-09-17T16:39:00.000-07:00

If you ordered a t-shirt, they are officially IN! Please call the church at 714.848.5511 and ask for Nick Fisher or dial extension 3330 or email nfisher@crosspointhb.org to arrange a time to pick yours up! Thank you for supporting the Gane Family this way!

A HUGE Day At CHOC

2008-09-17T08:52:00.000-07:00

Just a HUGE day for Luke at CHOC. KIIS FM was onsite from 6am to 10pm. There are lots of pictures of the day. Ryan Seacrest, Misty May Treaner, J.S. Guigere, Adam Morrison, Varsity Fan Club, Menudo (yep, for real!), Kids Around the Block, Colby O'donis, Heidi and Spencer from "The Hills", Ne-Yo. It was quite an eventful day! While the twins and I were visiting Luke, Varsity Fan Club stopped by and sang a song for Tomoko. It was very cool. Each of those guys can sing great! I don't have pics of everyone right now, because a few of the celebrities came by after we left. I will get those shots up tomorrow. I am sure that a lot of money was raised for CHOC today, which is what the day was really about. We won a bid on a silent auction basket and were very excited to be able to contribute to the cause. Seeing one of these events first hand gave me a new appreciation for the effort. It was not even obligatory efforts, or shameless promotion by KIIS or any of the stars. I sensed a very profound sincerity and care. I know Tomoko and Luke felt that too.
So all of that was cool, but one of the coolest parts of the day was that Luke did 5 minutes on the bike and worked out with power bands. I asked him how that all felt and he said, "It felt awesome". He also is talking more and just seems to be on an upswing. Now, I don't get too stoked. I kinda treat it like dating - you know the day you thought "things are going pretty good" was the day before a massive blow up between you and your girlfriend? It will be exciting when Luke starts stringing better and better days together. The doctors told Tomoko and Luke yesterday that this is the week we will be able to see if his body is accepting or rejecting the transplant. Obviously, that is a critical issue and one I know we all are praying about. His eyes still look way trippy, but it does not bother him at all, which is great. Today was amazing fun! We all just sit amazed at the experience. On one hand it is really difficult and challenging, but on the other, so very full of blessings and friendship and care and community. "Grace" is receiving God's favor even though we do not deserve it. Luke and our family are overwhelmed by God's grace right in the middle of this trial. God has brought so very many people from so very many different to support Luke and the family. I am confident that we do not deserve it. We are very blessed indeed!

Misty May ROCKS!

2008-09-16T17:44:00.000-07:00

Check this out:

http://www.mistymay.com/may/index

KIIS FM & CHOC

2008-09-16T09:33:00.000-07:00

YES, that is Luke standing with Misty May-Treanor, holding her Gold Medal!

Ok, so KIIS FM is at CHOC allll day and a bunch of stars will be there, etc. They shot a vid on Sat. and it's on this link:

http://www.kiisfm.com/pages/lollipoplive08/?_show

It's the Viral Video. Just click on the photo and you will catch a few quick shots of Luke getting down. It's a fun video. Check out the entire site. There will be photos and vids of the event posted sometime today too. Make sure to watch the vid because if they get at least 100,000 hits, the Anaheim Ducks will donate $10k to CHOC.

Last night Tomoko told me that this is the week where it should become clear if Luke's body is accepting or rejecting the bone marrow transplant. Luke is doing good. He's out of it from meds, but his spirits are good and I'm sure that today will be a fun one for him. Tomoko will be there all day and she'll take pics if cool stuff is going on in Luke's room. We'll post those this evening if there are any.

Thanks for the prayers!!!!

2008-09-15T12:00:00.000-07:00

After a wonderful afternoon with so many friends at the Lazy Dog Cafe, Luke's brothers and I made it up to see Luke for a while. He is in good spirits. Luke is taking 2 kinds of chemo-therapy, both of which promote healing. One is MTX and his last dose of that went in yesterday. He may need more later, but that is the anti-rejection drug. Then he gets cyclosporine everyday and I believe that is an immunity booster. Everyday has its bumps, but he is handling them very, very well. His eyes look way trippy in person! One kinda has to get used to it when you visit, but he is not bothered by it and the doctors say it's OK. All his hair is gone now except for some little fuzz. He still has his eyebrows and is glad of that. On Saturday, Luke was sleeping quite a bit and did not catch all the happenings, but some of the Anaheim Ducks and Angels were in the hospital and the Radio Lollipop (the CHOC in house radio station) crew was out and about. He did a feature in a music video for Radio Lollipop, which we can't wait to see. Tuesday, KIIS FM is broadcasting from 6 to 6 at CHOC - yes Ryan Seacrest and everything. I'm sure you are welcome to come by and check it out if you are into that sort of thing. Who knows, maybe you will be in a video?

A bunch of EHS volleyball parents sent over a new Wii system and Wii Fit for Luke. He told me he got a little too excited, which made him sick and worn out, but it seemed worth it for him to be thrilled even if for a few moments. Hopefully, he will be able to run that Fit program soon and get back his fitness.

So very many people are being so very loving and generous. Luke and we are truly blessed to have so many friends and to be so well cared for by our community. It is truly amazing. Organizations like Coast 2 Coast Hockey on the north side of town, to CrossPoint Baptist Church and Lazy Dog Cafe in the central part then down to Joey's Luperello's Pizza, Huntington Beach Pop Warner, Edison High School football and volleyball and DG Salon on the south end. Add to that Costa Mesa and Servite football teams, Huntington Beach police and fire departments, The Independent Newspaper, OCVarsity.com, LRG Clothing and a whole bunch of kind and caring friends, family, neighbors and even strangers are all lifting Luke and our family up and giving Luke and the rest of us strength, encouragement, and joy right in the middle of a very difficult circumstance. "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends." (John 15:14) And while nobody has been required to literally lay down their lives for Luke's cause, many have sacrificed and invested time, energy, effort, care, love, compassion and resources into Luke and our family. We continue in amazed gratitude for you all!!!

Hockey Fundraiser!

2008-09-14T22:17:00.000-07:00

Please Join Us For The

“FaceOff”

Fundraiser Raffle For Luke Gane

Coast2Coast

In-line Hockey Rink

5555 McFadden Ave

(between Springdale &Graham)

Huntington Beach

Saturday, Sept 20, 2008

Raffle Tickets will be sold from

10:00 am-1:30 pm.

Winners will be announced at 1:45PM

(Need not be present)

All monies raised will be donated to the Gane Family for any unforeseen expenses due to Luke's illness. Information on how to donate blood will be available!

Thank you for all your support, thoughts & prayers!

PRAY FOR LUKE 24/7

Visit Luke at lukegane.blogspot.com

Contact: Tina Richardson @ richfonda1@yahoo.com

or 714-654-1290 for event information

Lazy Dog Today!

2008-09-14T14:37:00.000-07:00

Don't forget to show your support for the Gane Family by heading out to Lazy Dog Cafe by Target on Beach. They are open till 10 pm. We went there earlier today, and the food was great! You will not be disappointed - Enjoy!

It's Gettin' Ugly

2008-09-12T18:55:00.000-07:00

When Luke throws up too much and his platelets get too low, this is the result. "Things are gettin' ugly" in the words of Jim & Tomoko.

This is the ugly part of the chemo that's hitting him right now. Luke's hair is falling out all over the place and he looks like he has three pupils because of burst blood vessels in his eyes. Jim says he looks like Aluen from Men In Black. As you can see, his face is swollen around his eyes (which is the worst of all of it) and he's throwing up still, though not as much as before. This is normal for the chemo to be like this right now. They also haven't heard what Luke's blood count is and are still waiting for this. The bad news today is that Luke's central line isn't functioning well on the withdrawl end of it. Please take a moment right now to pray to the Great Physician, to fix this problem so it won't develop into a bigger issue.

The good news is Luke is emotionally dealing with it. He's doing pretty good and hanging in there. Please keep praying for him in this area. There is some comedy in all this. As he's still trying to eat, he's had some cravings; his latest being sour dough bread. So today Tomoko goes to get him some bread, and has to come back because she forgot her wallet. Once she gets it, she heads back to the cafeteria. With the sour dough bread in hand, she stops at the nurses station where the nurses remind her that the bag of bread she has for him won't work because it's not a brand new bag (everything needs to be brand new & fresh). So she goes back to the cafeteria to get a new one and when she brings it to Luke, he asks, "Is it toasted?", "Yeah," says Tomoko. And Luke asks, "Where's the butter?" At least he is trying to eat. This is progress.

A Video Message From Luke

2008-09-11T12:34:00.000-07:00

Here is the video we showed of Luke at the Concert of Prayer for him on Friday, August 29th. In case you were not able to attend, here's a cool message from Luke to you.

Luke Update 9.11.08

2008-09-11T10:45:00.000-07:00

Luke has been feeling better the last couple of days. He is talking a little more and feeling more energetic. He is still fighting the upset stomach, but not as much. He has an itchy skin rash and the meds they give him to combat the rash make him irritable. Noah, Jacob, Matthew and I were by to see Luke last night and there were some friends there. One of his teammates had brought Luke a surprise earlier - a San Fransico 49rs football signed by the entire team! That was way cool. His nurse was very impressed. It was good to hear him talk and to see him more lively. Hopefully that kind of progress continues.

The family is doing well! Tomoko is holding up nicely, all things considered. Jacob is back to normal and loving life. Noah and Matthew are incredibly supportive as is Josh. We all feel very, very well taken care of. The meals have all been tremendous and
it is a huge help to the bachelor pad that our house has become. We all feel like things are going well with Luke. Sure, he's uncomfortable, but as long as no severe bad news comes out, we are stoked! Everyday holds new hope. Our great prayer request at this time is that Luke would progress well enough to be able show up to an Edison football game. He very much would like to be able to do so. Coach White sent over some game film and he really enjoyed that. Our family is so very grateful for all of the love and support coming Luke's and our way! We have a new understanding of what it means to be lifted up by prayer, care and compassion. Thank you!!!

Luke's Full Story And Good News

2008-09-10T10:06:00.000-07:00

Transplant and Good News

Our son Luke has aplastic anemia a potentially fatal condition for which a bone marrow transplant offers the best hope for a full recovery. This process reminds me of what the good news of Jesus Christ is all about.

Luke’s current condition is naturally fatal. It’s easy to rely on our doctor’s diagnosis for Luke because the doctors ARE the authority on the solution. God is the authority regarding spiritual life or death and He has given a spiritual diagnosis. The Bible tells us: “For the wages of sin is death, BUT the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom. 6:23).

When the doctors told us that Luke’s youngest brother Jacob was a donor match, we all rejoiced! That was great news! “Jesus said, I am the way the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). People tend to balk at Jesus being the only solution to our spiritual plight, but I hope you can see that just as we rejoice in Jacob being the one chosen way to save Luke, it is good news that Jesus is the one and only chosen way to give us eternal life.

Luke will receive 4 full days of chemo-therapy, which will reject the death causing cells in his marrow, so he can adopt and absorb the new life-giving bone marrow from Jacob. In Mark 1:15 Jesus said, “…the kingdom of God (which means spiritual life) is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). Spiritually, we have death-causing “cells” like lying, blasphemy, lust, etc. and these are killing our spiritual life. These “cells” must be rejected. That’s what it means to repent. When we turn from our bent toward rejecting God and His way and turn toward loving and obeying Him – that is repentance. When one wishes to receive the spiritual life that God offers through Jesus Christ, they must make room for the new life to take over by rejecting the deadly “cells” of sin and embracing the life giving “cells” of God’s love through Jesus Christ.

The doctors can’t explain the bone marrow process, yet they know it works. It is by faith that we, along with our entire medical team, believe that new life from the bone marrow transplant will find its way to where it belongs and give Luke a full and complete recovery. Luke cannot repair himself on his own. The Bible says, “For by grace are you saved by faith and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God and not of works lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9). A person receives spiritual life in the same fashion as one receives a bone marrow transplant – by faith.

I was 16 years old when my eyes were opened to these truths and I came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. I responded by praying something like this:

Dear God,
I know that I am a sinner. I have lied, cheated, stolen and done many other things that are wrong in Your sight. Please forgive me for my sin. I ask you to come into my life to be my Savior and my Lord. Thank You for the promise of a home in heaven with You. I commit my life to You today. Amen.

If a new spiritual life is something you would like to embrace, then I encourage you to take a few minutes to pray through the above prayer with all your sincerity and devotion, so that you too can rejoice in the confidence of knowing that you have eternal life.

If you indeed prayed that prayer, your next steps are similar to that of Luke’s following his transplant., You will need to be in a place where you will be well supported, nurtured, and cared for. The best place for that to occur is in a good, Christ-centered church. If I can be of any assistance as you process these thoughts, please contact me: jgane@crosspointhb.org.

Jim

Luke Update

2008-09-09T17:26:00.001-07:00

A care package from Luke's favorite clothing company - LRG - arrived and Luke was stoked!!! Thanks to our friend Eric, Luke got to meet some of the guys from LRG this summer and they graciously sent him some stuff when they heard about him being in the hospital. How cool is that?!

Noah praying...

Coach White, Head Coach at EHS & his son, Garret

I saw Luke this morning and Dr. Soni was there. We asked how he thought Luke was doing and basically he told us that there are no surprises or disappointments and that they hope to see some signs of improvement in the next few days, but that the real tell will be around day 20. Luke told me he is feeling better except for his mouth. He is really hating that action. What he is experiencing is actually better than the mouth sores we keep hearing he might get. To this point, no sores, so keep praying that those stay away. He's not losing much hair. He has not been sick as often. He does have some blood issues, a central line issue, a skin rash that itches, and lots and lots of meds for this or that.

Tomoko and I are encouraged by his stable condition. Emotionally, we are all doing well. We have chosen to embrace these current circumstances as the new normal. We are enduring by God's grace and with the constant care and encouragement of so many! We actually do more than endure, we rejoice, we praise, we give thanks and we rest in an Almighty God, who holds the universe in His hand. Knowing that He cares, that many hundreds of friends and neighbors are praying and caring makes such a huge difference. We are so blessed, indeed.

There is some confusion about visiting Luke and rules at CHOC. We have a set of printed rules. There are rules at the front desk. People wonder if Luke is up to having visitors, etc. And my best response is - It just depends. Luke is happy to see friends. Nights and weekends seem to be the more free times to see him. Right now, he cannot stand to talk and gets frustrated by too many questions. If you are extremely healthy, have not been around ill people and can tolerate Luke not interacting much with you, then please feel free to stop by. He is allowed no more than 3 guests at a time, but last weekend they flexed on that a little. Somebody told me a good rule of thumb for how long a hospital visit should last: When you feel like you want to sit down, that's a good time to say farewell.

FUNDRAISER TONIGHT!!!!! LAST MINUTE NOTICE!

2008-09-09T14:54:00.000-07:00

We have just been notified that two other teams will be sponsoring a dinner night for Luke. The first one will be TONIGHT from 5:30-7:30 and will be donated by Jay's Catering -sponsored by Jr. Midget Green.

This Thursday Sept. 11th, Jr. Midget Gold team will sponsor the dinner from 5:30-7:30.

All dinners will be at Edison High School next to the track.

Sorry for the last minute notice, but we greatly appreciate all of the support!

Another Fundraiser!!!

2008-09-09T11:04:00.000-07:00

Several Huntington Beach Pop Warner Football teams will be holding charity dinner nights during the month of September from 5:30-7:30 at the Edison High School practice field to benefit Luke Gane. ALL proceeds will be donated to the Gane family. The first dinner night will be sponsored by Oggi's Restaurant this Friday September 12, 2008 from 5:30-7:30 next to the Edison High School Track. The Midget Green Football team will be hosting the dinner. Bring your family and friends, have a great dinner and help make a difference!

Luke Update

2008-09-08T22:09:00.000-07:00

We all hope that Luke's bone marrow transplant works and works well. The countdown to see if Luke is progressing effectively is 20 days from bone marrow transfusion. Today is day 7. The pre-transplant chemo is still in him and will continue to fade in intensity until about the end of the week. I saw Luke for a long time on Friday, and a short time Saturday and Sunday. He looks way better than he did last week. Still, he is struggling through upset stomach and severe weakness and fatigue. So much so that he answers virtually no texts or calls right now, so if you are trying to reach him, don't be disappointed if he does not get back to you. It does not hurt him to talk, it's just that when he talks it causes the disgusting taste in his mouth to get worse. He has had a few issues with various ailments plus the meds and reactions, but all in all he is doing well. He gets a little irritated and frustrated at times, which is out of character for him, but good news if you ask me. I'm glad to see that he has the energy to be frustrated. It sure beats seeing him completely numb like he was last week. A few of Luke's buds, Coach White, Coach "Forg" and others were by to see Luke over the weekend and that sure lifts his spirits. He ate some of Grandma Keiko's teriyaki chicken with rice, so that was good news too.

Luke and our entire family remain very encouraged by and grateful for the calls, notes, prayers and great other varieties of loving support. We most definitely are gaining courage from you. The stark reality of Luke's condition, even still, can be very troubling. While the doctors anticipate a full recovery, any number of dire situations are still possible and so we take great comfort not only in the fabulous support of so many family, friends, neighbors doctors, nurses and even strangers, but also in a great and good God who knows and cares. "Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You" (Psalm 56:3) is a practice that Tomoko and I are increasingly familiar with these days. It's so good to know that we are so well supported and cared for.

Luke Is INCREDIBLY Loved By His Friends!

2008-09-08T11:30:00.001-07:00

Several of Luke's friends came to visit him the other day.

Some GREAT Friends to Luke

2008-09-07T15:43:00.000-07:00

Jordan and Dylan visiting Luke

Kody and Sammy visiting Luke. Luke is Kody's poster boy at school. She brought Luke that cool blanket she and her mom made. It totally lifted Luke's spirts!

Lock's For Luke, Hawaii AND EHS Football Pictures

2008-09-07T15:30:00.000-07:00

These images are all awesome! A special thanks to Hernan for taking these pictures! Click on each of the links below to go to each album.

Locks for Luke

JV v Long Beach Cabrillo

JV @ Lahainaluna

Varsity @ Lahainaluna

Awesome Maui Pics

55

2008-09-05T23:33:00.001-07:00

Tomoko pointed something very interesting out tonight. Edison just won their football game against Long Beach Cabrio 63-8. Notice the win is by 55 points - Luke's Varsity number. Pretty cool. Another football mom said, "Please note 33 was Luke's number last year. Someone just mentioned that we won by 33 in Hawaii (both teams) and we won by 55 tonight!!" Very powerful!

Luke Update

2008-09-05T16:42:00.000-07:00

Jacob is doing very well. His back is nearly normal and his sinus infection is getting better. The rest of Luke's brothers are doing well too. I just got back from a few hours with Luke. He looked way better than over the weekend and Tuesday. Still, he's been down the last few days. He's just worn out from the garbage he has to endure. Well, we talked a while about how he needs to fight and push to the limit. In our family, we talk about "make it happen opportunities" and he is most definitely in one now. It was a good talk. Within several minutes he was on the recumbent bike that's in his room. He did a 20 second set and a 30 second then got sick before being able to complete a third. It seems like he is most fatigued in the day and has a little more energy at night, so his mom will see if he feels like exercising at night. It's vital that he be active. If he lays flat and keeps his breathing relaxed he risks fluid build up in his lungs. As far has his medical progress, they took him off what I call the M medicine (because I keep forgetting the name). They are concerned about his liver and will put him back on M tomorrow and add a med. for the liver. He's also got a fever, which they are going to treat with antibiotics starting today.

I read, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble" (Psalm 46:10) to Luke. Think about that - "a VERY present
help". How cool is that?! We continue to be grateful for how much God's presence is coming to Luke through the care, compassion and comfort so many of you bring his way!

Thanks,
Jim

More Platelets Needed

2008-09-05T14:30:00.001-07:00

Thank you to everyone so willing to donate their platelets directly to Luke. The CHOC Blood & Platelet Donation Center has enough appointments scheduled through the first half of September, but Luke will need more platelets during the latter half of the month. When you call, they will stagger your appointment to meet Luke's platelet needs. If you would like to give to Luke in this way, please call the Blood & Platelet Donation center to schedule an appointment at 714.532.8339. Or email at: donatebloodforkids@choc.org

Don't forget you can also give blood in Luke's name to the blood bank at CHOC. Though your blood will not go directly to Luke, it will readily go to another hospitalized child in need of a transfusion at CHOC. Thanks for giving!

More of "Locks for Luke"

2008-09-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

Here is a wonderful Kodak Slideshow from Heather, who SO graciously donated her hair to Locks of Love at the "Locks for Luke" event and was sponsored by so many giving people to cut her beautiful waist-length hair to support the Gane Family. Thank you, Heather!

In her own words. . .

Hi Everybody!

I just wanted to share some of the photos I have from Saturday and say thank you again to all who stepped up to the "hair challenge" and helped surpass the $1000 donation we were aiming for! I'm not sure of a final figure yet since there are still checks coming in the mail, but I know that by Friday afternoon, you all helped bring the total to $1775, just from what we were tracking over e-mail. Saturday's donations were tremendous, and it was just amazing to see everyone come together like that for Luke and his family.

Please enjoy the photos from the event--these are just the ones I took, so I'm sure there are a bunch more out there that will be passed along, as well.

Thanks again!
Heather

http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLandingSignin.jsp?Uc=xmply33.2y1uaghv&Uy=-pxjj9j&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0&UV=250679259602_231590970211&localeid=en_US

CHOC Team

2008-09-04T08:32:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of Luke with his doctors from Transplant Day. The red stuff in the large bag is Jacob's bone marrow. That's about 1/5 amount at start. Yesterday, one of Luke's buds asked if he was being well taken care of. My answer was an emphatic YES! Dr. Soni; Dr. Shay, Dr Ken, Dr. Nugent (and 3 or 4 other doctors not pictured). These are simply wonderful people who show excellent and sincere care for Luke. I wish the nurses could be in the shot too. They are so very attentive and loving and diligent to make sure Luke is treated efficiently for his illness and well cared for in his times of need. We simply could not ask for better care. CHOC Rules!

As of last night, Luke's greatest challenge has been a full body rash. We can anticipate that the next 19 days will be very difficult. Sores in his mouth and down his throat are what we are being alerted to as the next difficult symptom. But once Luke feels up to it, he will be able to lift weights and ride a lifecycle while in the hospital. Dr. Nugent has already assigned a P.T. to Luke, so we definitely have that to look forward to. People wonder if Luke will play football again, and the answer is, most likely. As long as the bone marrow takes and Luke follows instructions during rehab, he should be able to play again, and go to the beach, play volleyball, wrestle his brothers and live a full, productive and normal life. That is our prayer. Thanks for joining us in asking God to bless in these ways!!!

Both mine and Tomoko's employers have been wonderful. Tomoko works at the Huntington Beach Union High School District and plays a fairly vital role in her department. The HBUHSD has been incredibly supportive and helpful. Tomoko has been with Luke all day and night just about everyday and that means so much to her and to Luke's healing. My deepest thanks to the HBUHSD. CrossPoint has been very, very, very flexible and supportive. I serve with a great boss and a fabulous team of full time, part time and even volunteer servants of Christ. I am so blessed and grateful!

"And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory, by Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19). He is most definitely using so very many of you to supply our need! Thanks!

Jim

Another Fundraiser for Luke

2008-09-03T15:21:00.000-07:00

Support the Gane Family on Sunday, September 14th, by eating at Lazy Dog Cafe in Westminster, right off the 405. When you present this coupon during your meal a portion of the cost will go to the Gane Family and any expenses incurred by Luke's illness. Click on the flier to make it full size and print from there. If you need it sent to you another way, we will be happy to send you a jpg or pdf file;. just email bfisherhb@yahoo.com. Thanks, and we'll see you there!

TRANSPLANT DAY!

2008-09-02T15:37:00.001-07:00

friends of Luke,

Well today went tremendously well! I would say it was an A+ day. The bone marrow donation from Jacob to Luke was very successful. Jacob was a stud! He's up and moving, but somewhat sore and not sure if he'll make it to school tomorrow. He's excited because he can't take a bath or shower until Friday, but bummed he cannot surf or skate for a while longer. Mostly, Jacob is stoked he was able to help his brother. We are all very proud of him!

It was like a party in Luke's room today. We had 5 doctors & two or three nurses leading a celebration with Jacob's harvested bone marrow dripping into Luke's central line. Everyone was very excited that this day has finally come. Now, I have to be clear - this is not a slam dunk solution. There are several weeks ahead of waiting and watching and praying that Luke's bone marrow fully engrafts and begins producing efficiently. That is the biggest concern at this time.

Luke is doing much better on the nausea front, but is struggling with a body rash. The medical team is working hard to manage it for him and he is working hard to deal well with it. He was able to talk a little more today and he flashed one of his classic smiles, which was great to see. We can anticipate Luke getting painful mouth and throat sores and other complications due to his low white blood cell count. He is allowed to have guests, but it is imperative that they be completely healthy. The doctors do not even like guests that have been around ill people to visit, so please keep that in mind. They will also be sticking more closely to the visitor rule of 3 at a time. Also, if you are texting or calling Luke, please understand that he is way out of it. It's very hard to talk and he is so weak, it's even hard to text. Tomoko is faithful to deliver messages, so feel free to leave them on the blog, or send an email.

I ran across the verse yesterday and it applied so well as the events of today approached. I know it's a verse that applies to all of us at some time or another. Isaiah says of God: " You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You" (26:3). God's richest blessings to you all!