An almost year-long ordeal that included a double lung transplant and a five month stay in hospital, rehab and recovery facilities in Chicago, ended on a happy note, Friday, when an escort of Kewanee police, fire and ambulance vehicles surprised the Kewanee city councilman meeting him at Northeast Park and escorted him with lights flashing, sirens blaring and horns honking through town, accompanying him to his home on Ridge Road.
Faber’s journey began last December when problems with his lungs worsened to the point where he required supplemental oxygen around the clock. On Dec. 23 his condition had deteriorated and he was hospitalized locally. He was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in downtown Chicago on June 27 where it was determined that COPD, emphysema and pulmonary fibrosis had left one of his lungs dead and the other at only 20 percent capacity and going down.
He was found to be eligible for a double lung transplant and placed on the national donor list on July 13. With his last lung about to give out, Faber and his family got the news an amazing two days later that a set of lungs had become available in Florida and on July 15, he underwent a lengthy surgery to transplant the lungs.
The operation was successful and the prognosis for a full recovery was optimistic, but there were many miles left on Faber’s road to recovery. His first stop was a rehab center across the street from the hospital, then to a high rise condo three clocks away which leases exclusively to recovering transplant patients. All along, Faber received the support of a group of friends and family who also helped his wife, Peggy, back home, who suffers from MS. Faber’s sister Terry Wolfe, and friends Jennifer Russell and Wanda Neirynck traveled to Chicago rotating one week shifts doing housekeeping and meals for Steve.
There were two bumps along the way. Faber was originally scheduled to come home in early November, but an internal wire holding his sternum in place following the surgery broke and needed to be replaced which delayed his trip home. Then, two spots of skin cancer were found on top of his head which had to be removed, leaving an ugly scar, which Terry says now you can hardly see.
The next hurdle was walking, something Faber hadn’t done for months. Doctors would not release him to go home until he could walk across the room on his own. With determination and therapy he finally got to the point where he could walk in the apartment. He also became able to ride his Hoveround power chair to and from appointments at the rehab center and hospital on his own in downtown Chicago.
“I was working on my computer this week,” sister Terry told The Kewanee Voice Friday, “when I realized that Steve was standing behind me looking over my shoulder. He had walked into the room on his own.”
Friday morning friends Dave Snyder and Lisa Pitzer drove to Chicago, loaded up Steve’s gear and drove him back to Kewanee, the Hoveround attached to the back of the car. While at home he will still be undergoing rehab at Kewanee Physical Therapy & Rehab Center and more work to do before he is fully recovered, but he has been breathing normally since the transplant and that’s a big step in the right direction for someone who had been pulling an oxygen tank around with them.
He plans to attend the next Kewanee City Council meeting on Monday, Dec. 11. Faber’s last meeting was June 26, the day before he went to Chicago. He postponed the appointment at Northwestern so, as the senior council member, he could chair the meeting due to Mayor Gary Moore needing to be absent. As soon as he was able, Faber watched council meetings on Facebook, but missed the interaction with fellow council members and the public.
“I miss talking to people, finding out what they’re concerned about and what the city can do to help,” said Faber in an earlier interview.
Faber’s ears still work, as always, his voice is as strong as ever, and he’s always up for a good discussion, so it shouldn’t be too long before he’s back doing what he does best…serving the people of the city he loves and where he’s glad to be once again.
