Chuck Castner

Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.  We will post updates as we receive them and again thank you for all of the love and support.




My dad fell nearly 40 years ago, completely destroying his spine.  Over the years, he has had countless spinal fusions to restore his spine, or essentially what's left of it.  Some of those surgeries were successful, and others unfortunately not so much.  Most doctors have turned my dad away, saying surgery is too risky and didn't want to put their reputations on the line in case something went awry.   With his conditions and quality of life diminishing, he met an incredible doctor who was willing to risk it all to improve my dads' life.  Today, they are removing most of his previous fusions and replacing it with newer more advanced equipment.  The risks associated with removing these fusions that are 30 plus years old are obviously very high.  Blood loss, collapsed lungs, permanent nerve damage, and paralysis among other things are our biggest concerns.  However, his doctors' confidence in his ability to fix the mass amounts of damage that have been done, paired with my dads' strength helps us breathe a little easier as we set up camp for the next 16 hours in the waiting room.  My dad has a tee time set for May 1st, 2018 and says he will be ready to hit the golf course running ready to kick ass and take names.  He is the strongest and most resilient man I know, and I can't thank our friends and family enough for all of the love and support pouring in for my dad.  Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.  We wouldn't be able to make it through the longest 16 hours of our lives without you.  


---Lucy Castner