*** Please scroll to bottom of feed for link to Dad's Obituary and Celebration of Life information.
I want to thank everyone that has reached out and expressed their prayers, concern and admiration to Dad. It is very uplifting and very much appreciated. This Blog site Tracey and I started and abandoned many years ago, so hopefully I can navigate it sufficiently enough to post updates for everyone.
As I mentioned in the group text, Dad contracted COVID around August 8th which hit him pretty hard. As the virus took hold, it impacted his oxygen levels and lungs. He then contracted bacterial pneumonia with further impacted him. On Friday morning, August 16th, Dad was fully sedated and put on a ventilator. He appeared to be making baby steps forward and was stabilizing over the weekend. On Tuesday, August 20th, Dad was able to regulate his blood pressure on his own, his oxygen levels were trending in the right direction and holding and they lowered his sedation levels enough that he was able to respond to some commands, e.g. move your toes, squeeze my hand, etc. and opened his eyes. Unfortunately, that same evening he took a step back and was put on back on the blood pressure medication, increased oxygen levels and fully sedated.
We have shared all your comments and prayers with Dad! PLEASE feel free to leave comments here and we will read them to him. It gives us things to say while we are visiting.
UPDATES:
8/22/24 - Yesterday afternoon he was still fully sedated and was "stable". Last night was another rough night for Dad. His oxygen levels were increased to 100% for a period but now are sitting at around 60% (they like to see 30-40% to conduct breathing trials). They take daily lung x-rays and they are not showing much (if any) improvement on a day to day basis. Today is the sixth day on the ventilator which is starting to get concerning. He is not showing the improvements that he needs to be making. It is still day to day. Your prayers are very much appreciated and please continue to keep them up.
8/22/24 - Mom went up this evening and spent some time with dad. Not a lot of change to report from earlier in the day.
8/23/24 - Dad had another rough night. His oxygen levels were increased again and no real prominent sign of recovery. Tonight they are going to try a different type of sedation that might help keep him a bit more stable and hopefully allow the body to heal. Today is the seventh day on the ventilator with no strong signs of recovery at this point. Each day on the ventilator is more and more concerning on obtaining a healthy recovery. Still day to day. Thanks for the comments, they are wonderful not only for dad but for the family as well.
8/24/24 - Not really good news to share this evening. Dad is not showing signs of recovery. He now is having periodic episodes where he works against the ventilator, even in his sedated state. He is not maintaining his oxygen levels. Still very much day to day - continue to pray.
8/25/24 - No good news to report this evening.
8/27/24 - Today my father is in the presence of his Heavenly Father. Dad passed away last night surrounded by his beloved bride and children. We would like to extend our gratitude for all the support, kind words, comments and expressions of love. Dad's celebration of life will be this Saturday, August 31, 2024. I will post dad's obituary in the near future.
Richard Buch's Celebration of Life
Saturday, August 31, 2024 at 11:00 am
Central Valley Baptist Church
600 N. Ten Mile
Meridian, Idaho 83642
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16
Richard Buch's Obituary (click on the link): https://www.afterall.com/obituaries/RichardBuch
Link to the Celebration of Life Service: https://youtube.com/live/ppz3j4iuWQE?feature=share
