Fundraiser to help Lebanon couple with medical catastrophe
Jun. 22—Family and friends are asking for donations to help the Dustin Doyle family of Lebanon stay on top of bills until other emergency aid kicks in.
His wife Lisa feared he wouldn't pull through but credits prayers from numerous congregations for his survival.
Doyle, 34, is in critical care at Witham Hospital in Lebanon after undergoing emergency surgery June 16, and then going into septic shock as a complication Saturday. A second surgery was necessary.
Dustin came out of the second surgery and had to be put on life support because his blood pressure kept dropping and his heart couldn't keep up, wife Lisa said, adding that medical staff told her it would be days before he may show improvement.
She feared for his life and asked for prayers on Facebook Saturday evening.
"I saw him again at noon Sunday, the exact time so many people had been messaging me that their whole congregation, and another congregation, and other churches too, had been praying for him," Lisa said. "I went in and he was doing much better than I expected.
"I heard the nurses during shift change, and one nurse told the other she fought his blood pressure until 11:30 a.m., which blew my mind because that's when most churches start everywhere and that's when he started getting better," Lisa said.
He awoke for a bit and was able to answer a few questions with a thumbs up or down Sunday.
"It was the mass prayer," Lisa said. "And I know it was. That's been the best thing. It's all going to be okay. God will provide. We just take it one day at a time."
The Doyles attend Traders Point Christian Church Northwest.
Lisa posted on Facebook Monday that Dustin was awake and wanted to write a note to her during visiting hours Monday.
He wrote "It was God."
"It just gave me chills," Lisa said.
Dustin was still intubated Tuesday morning but continuing to improve, Lisa said. He is expected to need a third surgery in a few months.
Doctors, during the first surgery, removed a mass not believed to be malignant from his colon, Lisa said.
Lisa is a business student at Indiana University Kokomo and lost her job during the COVID-19 pandemic because their three school-aged children were repeatedly quarantined after being exposed to others with the virus, she said.
Their rent is paid until November, but Dustin was expected to be off of work as a deliverer/installer for Laminique in Lebanon for at least a month even before the complications arose.
"Dustin's short-term disability pay will take weeks or longer to start rolling in, and medical bills will pile up in the meantime," family friend Maria Flora said. Flora is sponsoring a fundraiser seeking $3,000 to help the Doyles make ends meet while they wait. Search for Lisa Rhoades' Facebook page. Flora will answer questions via Facebook Messenger.
