Friday, March 22, 1
Dally Nebrsskan
Ja? recoverfa
Heart pal
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73 C3
IS,
By Lisa. Uniting
Stf Barter
"Don't take your crar.s to heaven
heaven knows we reed them down
here."
That's how heart tranrplar.t patient
Phillip Jay's new bumper sticker reads.
But he hasn't put it cn his car's bumper
yet he says he'd like to gee similar
ones made for distribution in Lincoh.
Jay recently returned to ' Lincoln
from Cleveland, with a new heat ar.d
! "9 spfiond chance cf lif 3." His Feb. 7
j operation at Cleveland Clinic was fol
! lowed by a speedy recovery. A crowd cf
nearly 100 people greeted rim cna his
wife, Harriet, with song and a kazoo
band when he walked into tha Lincoln
Municipal Alport
It wasn't until fter seven "unsatis
factory hearts that a goad hert ms
found for Jay. Jay said that the many
I unsatisfactory hearts hai Mrs. Jay and
the doctors worried he wouldn't make
it to the operation.
When the doctors told the Jays of the
seventh unsatisfactory heart, Jay just
replied "that wasn't the heart tor him,
and turned over ar.d went back to
sleep," Mrs. Jay said.
Now that the transplant is complete,
Jay says he feds better now then he has
in five years.
It will be one year tMs April since
Jay's second massive heart attack left
him with three-fourths of his hc.-t
damaged and little hops for survive!
Doctors told him he "wouldn't have
a life," Mrs. Jay said.
"When they told me I wouldn't live
very long, I told them I wm going to,"
Jay said.
Last fall, the Jays realized he needed
a new heart. Through the Lincoln
Foundation and ether fund-raising
Future fund...
Continued Ircia Fsa 1
"It's got good implications for
strengthening the state of Nebraska,"
she said.
But LB183, which could establish a
work-study program tt Nsbresk&'s pest
secondary institutions, 'feeyj'r.t sit"'
awhile before the Legiskture discusses
it further, she said.
Morehe&d ssid hsr priority in the
Legislature Uds scscica is to m IMi J3,
which would" nqsira the usa of sect
belts, approved
drives, Jay raised enough money to get
the heat transplant. The gr oups raised
about $05,000, which will pay for the
hospital bills and medication. Medica
tion could cost more than $6,000 ayear,
Jay said.
Jay said he has two rules for recov
ery: a positive attitude and listening to
his doctors.
On Feb. 1 1, four days after his trans
plant, Jay began his recovery by walk
ing in the hospital halls and riding a
stationary bicycle. Wi.en Jay took his
first walk outside his room, accompanied
by a nurse, hi3 children at home heard
about it.
Jay. had told the nurse that if she
wanted to walk with him, she had to
hurry up.
"I loved that when you said that
'Hurry up then,' " said his daughter
Autumn, 7.
Jay still is walking. He walks lVito2
miles, three times a day, he said.
His life before the transplant wss
quite different. He had two oxygen
tanks in his home. One was portable,
which he took with him when he left
the house. And he got little exercise
because he was so weak.
"It's just easier to move around new.
I don't get tired from moving around
and exercise," Jay said.
returns home;
l live ifiar.q'
pf!0 7
i
particiDants
lor wiiaiiie convention
There are some "little" inconven
iences that come with a transplant, Jay
said. He cannot eat fresh fruit for the
next year as a caution against infection
and germs. And if he goes fishing with
his son Neil, 12, Jay must avoid punc
turing his skin with a rusty hook by
letting Neil bait the hooks.
"But that's not much of a sacrifice
for a second chance of life," Jay said.
Now that Jay is on the road to recov
ery, he hopes to continue his educa
tion. He was a graduate agronomy stu
dent at UNL when he had his April
heart attack, and had to take incom
pletes for the semester. He plans to
finish each course one at a time, and
possibly return to school full-time next
January.
Jay says that one of the toughest
things he has ever done was to write a
thank-you letter to the family of the
donor.
"What to say, how not to say too
much, but to say thank you," Jay said.
'That took a long time."
The hst scheduled fund-raising dri e
u a basketball game between UNL's
football team seniors and DeitaUp.ulcn
fraternity. Th e gn will be cn April 1 4
at 2 p.m. at Lincoln Hijh School, 2223 J
St. Donations will be accepted
More than 200 collets students from
10 universities and ens state college
were in Lincoln Friday, Saturday and
Sunday, for what some consider "the
most significant event that has taken
place on East Campus thi3 semester."
These students, most of them natu
ral resource and wildlife scholars, met
in the East Union for the 15th Annual
North Central Region Student Wildlife
Conclave.
The conclave featured several speak
ers who spoke on important wildlife
topics. Speakers included: Carol (Well,
founder of the Wildlife Rescue Team;
Roger E. Gold, UNL professor cf ento
mology; and Eetsy Hancock founder of
the Nebraska Raptor Rehabilitation
Program.
Students participated in a quiz bowl,
answering questions that pertained to
natural resources and wildlife. They
also took Held hips, including one to
Grand Island, where they locked tt
sand hill cranes.
Other activities included a banquet,
dance, party and an art and photo
contest.
Luke Lionberger, chairman of this
year's conclave, said the event "was
well worth everyone's efforts."
"All the hard work really paid off,"
Lionberger said. "UNL students handled
themselves professionally. We presented
the university in a positive manner."
The 11 schools that participated in
this year's evert were UNL, Colorado
State University, Purdue University,
Michigan State University, Michigan
Tech, University of Wisconsin at Stev
ens Point, the University of Minnesota,
University cf Missouri at Columbia,
Iowa State University, South Dakota
State University, University cf Southern
Illinois, Wayne State College.
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