President Swigert

 

Saturday, September 28th and Sunday, September 29, 2024 will be a weekend we won't quickly forget. 

Several weeks before this announcement came out about a special upcoming stake conference, rumor was going about that our stake was about to be divided.   This was giving me  anxiety- because I am the Stake Music Director and my stake Choir director--Holly Proctor lives in Bullhead City and I doubted she and I would end up in the same stake, and I could not do the stake music without her- she is phenomenal. 

Two or three weeks before the scheduled stake conference- Ryan got an email from our Stake Presidency.  In this email it told him that the stake would be divided, it included a form to fill out and an interview time for him to be interviewed by the visiting General Authorities. Because Ryan was not serving as a Bishop, or because he was not on the High Council, his interview was later in the morning--around 11 AM and only 6 minutes long. Current Bishops were 8 minutes. Ryan was serving in the Bishopric of our ward, hence why he got selected to be one of the 25 interviewees. 

The form he was asked to fill out was straight forward--past and current callings, did he serve a mission and where.  Are you married?  Do  you have children, if so --ages.  Then he was asked to attach a picture of himself and wife . He used the above photo.  Which I don't love.   Ryan spent a lot of time pondering the last question on the sheet--list the names of 3 brothers you feel could serve as a new stake President. 

Ryan started getting a little nervous about his upcoming interview-so I started getting nervous.  On Friday, the day before the interview,  we made a trip up to Las Vegas to attend the temple.  

Saturday morning came, and he got dressed, I helped him select a tie to wear etc.  I was so nervous for him- and he was nervous, and Ryan Swigert rarely gets nervous.   I felt like I was sending him off to his Dental School and residency interviews all over again. 

Gracie snapped this picture as Ryan  was getting ready to walk out the door and said, "Oh, they grow  up so fast- don't they!"  

It was so funny!  She uses humor to dispel tension- like her Dad.  Ryan does the exact same thing. 

An hour went by and I was a wreck. I just kept moving.  I cleaned the house, and cleaned the house again.  Why was a 6 minute interview taking so long?   He finally came home and walked in calm as a summers day and said--"Honey, you have nothing to worry about!  They won't select me.  My interview was short and straight forward.   All the other men they are interviewing are incredible and they are all former bishops, we have nothing to worry about!!" 

 I admit-to see his relieved and calm face--helped.  I felt a little better.  But time ticked on and my nerves started up again.  We all knew that they would make the decision around 3 PM so that the new stake presidency could attend the 4PM training session of Stake Conference. 

Around 2 PM the doorbell rang.  Ryan and I were in the kitchen--trying to choke down some lunch.  Gracie comes in and says-"Dad, there are 2 men in suits on the door step."   We froze. I felt sick. An already tense and quiet house became dead silent.   Then we heard giggling!  It was Gracie--she said, 

"Just kidding.  It was me that rang the doorbell.  It was just too tense in here."  We had a good laugh.  

Later, I went into our bedroom to do something and Ryan's cell phone rang.  This was around 3:00.  I could hear him talking to someone.  Heard things like- yes-she is here, I can bring her down in about 15 minutes. 

"Honey, that was Elder Boom of the 70, he was calling to see if he could meet with you in the next 15 minutes." 

And then my heart stopped.   

I didn't recover.  I was shaking.  I threw on a dress and tried to look presentable.  

A few minutes later-I was walking through the doors of the stake center, and then I was meeting and shaking hands with Elders Boom and Thomas. 

They took me in the stake presidents office and closed the door.  They thanked me for coming and asked that I would start our meeting off with a word of prayer.  So I prayed. 

Then they started asking me questions. " Can you describe  for us what your relationship is like with your husband."

I told them the truth.  We are best friends.  We have been married for over 20 years, all through out his busy years of school and residency, I never felt like I tool a back seat.  His priorities are his relationship with the Savior and his Heavenly Father, and his wife and children.  Then came his secular obligations.

They asked me if I could support him serving in any calling in the church.  I said I felt I could.  They asked me if I had a testimony of the restored gospel. I said yes.  They asked me to bear my testimony to them.  So,  I did.  I'm not sure what I said.  But, I have a testimony of the gospel!!  So I shared  what was in my mind and heart. 

Next they called Ryan in, and extended the calling--They asked, Brother Swigert, we would like to extend the calling of serving as the first Stake President of the new Kingman, North Stake of Zion.  Do you feel you could accept this calling from the Lord.  Ryan tearfully said yes.  I'm not a cryer, but my throat got tight at that moment. It was a beautiful, emotional experience.   It was now 3:30 and that 4 PM meeting was starting soon.  

Who would you like to call as your counselors they asked?  They gave Ryan and I a few minutes alone together to pray about it and to let them know.  

Ryan and I both felt it should 2 of the 3 brothers that he had put on his list!!!  After we gave them those names- I told them I would happily let him serve, but I could not share my testimony in Stake Conference the next morning.  They chuckled and said I had to.  And then we left the building. 

They gave us permission to share the days events with our children and parents. My parent are sadly deceased, little did Ryan know, but his parents were en-route from St George to Kingman. They felt they wanted to come spend the weekend with us long before this all went down.  And it was a surprise to everyone else. Ryan and the kids did not know they were coming. But I had known for a few weeks -and the timing was perfect!!!!!

L to R- Elder Thomas, Elder Boom, Will Swigert, in the background -Kit and Stacy Merritt -soon to be Ryan's 's second counselor. 

After the adult, evening session of Stake Conference, we went home and Ryans parents were waiting at our house to surprise him!!!  It was perfect!!!   Ryan had the weight of the world on his shoulders and his father was here to lift the load and offer him a father's priesthood blessing.  He blessed us all with peace and strength.  Not only did I now have to bear my testimony in front of 800 people, I was still in charge of all the music and Ryan and I were playing our instruments. 

It was a sleepless night.  Ryan was very emotional all night long--as you can imagine.  I told him--I'm so glad that after I bear my testimony--it will be over for me.  I don't have to go and be a Stake President for the next 9 years. 

At 1:00 AM  we were still awake in bed.  We were saying and thinking things like--we are not old and responsible enough to lead a stake!!  What were they thinking when they asked us to do this?  What if we don't show up tomorrow?  If we got in the car right now and just started driving--how far away could be we by 10:00 AM!

But because we love the Lord, and we believe that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the restored church upon the earth today--what did we do--we got what little sleep we could and showed up the next morning at 9 AM to rehearse the musical numbers with the stake choir before the meeting started. I served the choir breakfast after the rehearsal and acted like nothing was up--despite the great turmoil I was feeling about having to stand up and say something intelligible in about 45 minutes. 

  

After the General session of Stake conference--Ryan was set apart by Elder Hans Boom of the 70.  He was given Priesthood keys from Jeffrey R Holland to lead the new Kingman North Stake.  Elder Holland is from my hometown of St George, and  his bother Dennis Holland was my uncle--so I was thrilled that the authority came from him.  

I'm so glad someone thought to take pictures. These are wonderful to have now that the day is over and we have settled into our new responsibilities. 

L to R
President Batty, President Thomas, President Kale Bodily,  Elder Boom, Elder Thomas, President Swigert, President Allred, President Kit Merritt

Here you see the existing stake presidency of the Kingman Stake on the left-and the new stake presidency of the Kingman North Stake on the right with the visiting authorities in the middle. 

I served under President Kale Bodily as his Stake Music Coordinator for 4 years.  They are wonderful men, who love their Savior and want to do his work. 

And then the endless hours of work began.  Here Ryan is at his desk in our old chapel-in his stake offices doing what he can while Kjersti practiced and Jace and Gracie were in their youth activities. I was measuring walls for pictures of Christ.  The office is old and we are working to get it updated. But it is taking forever. 

As soon as we could fit it into our schedule, we made a trip to  Vegas--to attend the temple and get suits ordered for President Swigert.  It was time to retire his 10 year old JC Penny special!!  That suit had served him well, but it was well worn. He bought it when we first got out of school!!

For years I have wanted to order custom made suits for Ryan.  I have loved the look and feel of them since I lived in CA in my 20's. But how do you justify such an expense?   Well, now that Ryan would be wearing a suit 4-5 days per week for all his meetings--I had the perfect excuse!!

I made an appointment at a place in Las Vegas called Bespoke.  I found out the company was founded by LDS members up in SLC.  So I wanted to support them.  It was a cool process.  The appointment was nearly two hours.  He got completely measured and then we had numerous fabrics to choose from.  We also selected pocket style, collar style, button holes, buttons, etc. It was so fun but exhausting!!  We knew the wait was 6-8 weeks. 

They arrived right before Christmas! He had them designed to have enough shoulder room so he could comfortably play his cello! And Christmas time for musicians brings lots of opportunity to try out those suits. During this time  he lost 12 lbs from the stress of his calling- and now he is trim and fit and looks amazing. And he is a beloved stake President.  So much more to tell.  But I must stop here for now. 

Pectus Excavatum

 Pectus Excavatum has become a familiar term in our household.    Ryan first learned about it years ago when he was completing  his surgical residency in Iowa.   

He kept expressing concern to me about it in our children, and I reassured him that I had it too, and it wasn't a big deal, etc.. But, thankfully, he didn't let the matter rest, and pursued getting them evaluated.

He learned that Dr.  David Notrica, based at the Phoenix Children's Hospital, was a world renowned pectus surgeon and located in our backyard!   His wait list is substantial. But, 12 months later, the kids saw him.  And then 6 months after that, it was summer, and time for pectus surgery. 

July 23rd, 2024 at 6 am, Gracie had to check in for surgery prep.  She was so nervous.  We felt so bad for her. She was so afraid she would wake up during the surgery. 

She was being brave. 

In her hospital gown!  She looks good in purple. 

This is Dr. Notrica.  Here he is going over everything she needs to expect.  It was too much for her.  I saw tears rolling down her cheeks. 

After he left, they brought in this dog-I forgot its name- to cheer her up and distract her. 

                                 Gracie loves dogs--so it helped!

They let in younger sister to also cheer her up!  Who  has pectus excavatum too.  We are one happy pectus family!  Ryan is the only one without pectus--and we all have it quite severely.  You might be wondering what Pectus is--I promise I will explain at the end of the post when I show the before and after pictures. 

In the next pre-op room Jace was also prepping for surgery. He was scheduled right after Gracie. 

Here she is-about to get wheeled into surgery.   Three hours later-we got the page--Gracie was finished.    During the wait time we went downstairs to eat, and then waited with Jace in his pre-op room. Ryan was reading To Kill a Mocking Bird  to him. I felt bad he couldn't have food or water during this time,  But he never complained. It was about noon when it was his turn. 

When we first saw Gracie in recovery, I was taken aback by how pale and grey she looked.  I wasn't expecting it. She looked dead. I felt my throat go tight and my heart leap when I first saw her.  That experience has caused me to feel so much empathy for parents that have lost a child. 

The anesthesia made her very emotional and she cried and cried. Mostly over the fact that she missed her dog Charlie and her cousins, and that vampires aren't real.   Ryan found it so entertaining. He chuckled and chuckled for about an hour while she went through the process of becoming more coherent. 

But of course he was at her side, holding her hand and stroking her forehead through the whole ordeal. 

Here you see Kjersti wiping a tear when she first saw her post- op sister.   She didn't expect Gracie to look so grey. 

One big awesome surprise-was the fact that her cousins--Breann and Aubrey--did come!  They flew down from St George to see her and spend 48 hours with her-while she was in the hospital. We were so humbled by their outpouring of love. 

Here is Jace all suited up.  These gowns were cool.  They had a tube that blew warm air onto their bodies. 

Jace getting his IV.  They had to try a few times.  I felt bad for him. 

                        Right before Gracie left for her surgery.

Jace was taken into surgery around 12:30pm. By 5 pm-Ryan was getting nervous. He still hadn't heard from the surgical team that Jace was finished.  All they would tell him was that Jace was in recovery.  But they wouldn't let us back yet. 

There was some mis communication-so that is why we weren't called back. 

Ryan was  relived to see him drowsy, but fine.  He was so worried that Jace was combative coming out of anesthesia, and that that was the reason we weren't allowed back. Ryan sedates his own patients and some go a bit crazy when they wake up. But he was like he always is-calm as a cucumber.

Pain meds are the greatest!!

Here Jace is overwhelmed with the intense pressure from the titanium bars.  You can see it in his face. 

Here are the 3 bars that will live inside Jace for about 4 years. Gracie only needed 2. 

They had hospital rooms right next to each other.  And Jace wanted to say hello from the doorway as they wheeled him by.  So cute.  They are good friends. 

Thumbs up ='s pain is manageable. 

Later that evening Jace developed a complication - a bilateral pneumothorax.  That's when air starts leaking from the lungs.  The nurse noted that he wasn't breathing deeply and Ryan confirmed it.  After that  observation--Ryan became a wreck.  They took Jace down for x-rays, etc.  Ryan slept in Jaces room that night and kept a close tab on him.  They heal on their own over time-usually and happen sometimes with this type of surgery.  Jaces surgery was complicated and long, so Dr. Notrica expected that this could happen. 

But they wanted those patients up and walking.  So, that's what we did.  We were a fair sized group walking the halls.  

They were in the hospital for 24-48 hours after surgery.  We ended up leaving the following evening. 

Jace was up and doing quite well the following morning.  Here you see them finishing their book  and eating breakfast. 

Gracie was a little more overwhelmed by the pressure in her chest.  She was miserable and didn't want to go home. But Ryan talked her into leaving that following evening. He wanted to get home, and the cousins had already headed back to Utah.  Ryan was so tired from sleeping in the hospital rooms and needed his own bed. 

So home we drove.  It's about 3.5 hours.  He timed it perfectly.  They got their evening dose of pain meds and then we left.  They slept the whole way home.  And we were all so happy to be home!!  There is something about the warm welcome of home that makes healing take place faster. 

Chest before surgery. 

Chest after surgery. 

They had the NUSS procedure.  In the past the repair involved breaking all the ribs and reshaping them. Now the repair is much less invasive and involves fitting titanium bars under the sternum that lift the sunken chest wall.  They are then bolted to the ribs and are inside for 3-4 years.  Then removed. 

Before Surgery Jace had a Haller index of 4.71 and had a lung and heart capacity at 60.1 % of normal. 

Gracie's Haller index was 4.58 and had a heart and lung capacity of 58.9 % of normal.

I have been measured and I have a a Haller index of 5.065.  My heart and lungs have not been evaluated yet.  It runs about $6500 out of pocket for the evaluation and takes 2 days in phoenix. So I'm gearing up.  For some reason our insurance didn't cover it with the kids either.  But they did cover a good portion of the surgeries. 

I will most likely not get the surgery.  It is not recommended for someone my age.  My ribs are old and brittle and they suspect that when they do the sternum lifting they will all crack or break and have to be plated. And I will live with chronic pain.

Jace and Gracie hobbled around our house for about 30 days like 90 year olds, stooped over.  They were adjusting to the weight of the titanium bars and the pressure.  It was an intense surgery. 

Learning about Pectus Excatum has been life changing for me.  I have lived a confused life. I have tried and tried to run a mile and never been able to. I am always short of breath and have very short endurance. I am always panting when I climb the stairs or exercise.  Hiking is a nightmare.  I have been so hard on myself  and wondered why, despite all the exercising I do, why  I can't do these things.  Being pregnant was so hard. I could not walk up my stairs without stoping on the landing to catch my breath.  I always felt so overwhelmed physically by the second trimester. I could not understand it and tried to alleviate it by having fitness trainers during the pregnancy etc.  Well, now that I'm 50-- I have the answer.  My heart and lungs are squished inside my chest wall. 

The higher the Haller index number the more severe the scoop is in the chest.  I am considered very severe. Anything over 3.25 is recommended to have corrective surgery. 

So, that's our news.  Pectus excavatum affects 1 in every 450 Americans-it pretty common and very genetic-so go look in the mirror and check out your kids!!!   The surgery deadline is 26 years old.  Then the ribs start getting too brittle!!