Cary teen marking first Christmas with life-saving gift of lungs
CARY, North Carolina (WTVD) -- A sick teenager will be home for Christmas after receiving a brand new pair of lungs.
Toby Stacy, 15, and his family moved from Georgia to Cary earlier this year so they could be close to UNC Children's Hospital while he waited on a double lung transplant.
In October, they received the good news.
"My mom came downstairs and said I just got the call. You're getting your lungs!" Toby said.
They rushed to the hospital where he was receiving treatment for end-stage Cystic Fibrosis.
Toby had been on the double lung transplant list since last December.
Click here to donate to Toby's GoFundMe page
"Once they had me in the bed wheeling me back, that's when it hit me that this is happening," Toby said.
Hours later, he had a new pair of lungs.
"I took my first breath and that was when I was like, I can breathe," he said.
The Cary community has rallied around Toby and his family every step of the way, raising thousands of dollars for his medical care.
PREVIOUS STORY: Cary rallies around Georgia teen who needs double lung transplant
"I thought it was kind of crazy that so many people were like I'll help you and I'll give you that," said Toby. "Without them, we wouldn't be able to be here."
Now, just in time for Christmas, Toby is getting a second chance at life.
"Just getting out of the hospital and getting in the car and sitting in the seat. It was just like I'm going home. I'll be able to get in my bed and see my dog again," he said.
The road to recovery will be long.
Toby is getting regular checkups and going to physical therapy three times a week.
But with each new day he is getting stronger, and this year, Christmas has a whole new meaning.
"First Christmas getting my lungs, just being able to do whatever I want now, really," he said.
