In some ways, Greg White is like any other sports-loving 16-year-old, except the sophomore at Larkin High School in Elgin is in need of a double lung transplant.

Diagnosed with cystic fibrosis just days after his birth, White is down to only 20 percent lung function.

“Within the last year his lung function began to fail,” his mother, Melissa White, said.

His family now faces thousands of dollars in medical bills and expenses as they prepared to temporarily relocate to St. Louis to be near St. Louis Children’s Hospital where White will receive his transplant when a set of lungs become available.

Greg White - with Dr. Mark Haupt, a fellow at Children's Memorial Hospital in Chicago - will have to have his double lung transplant performed at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. (Photo provided by Erin Barham)

Doctors at Children’s’ Memorial Hospital in Chicago referred the family to St. Louis Children’s Hospital for the risky surgery, Melissa White said.

White had tests done in October that showed he was a candidate for a transplant. He is on the inactive waiting list, meaning he is eligible for the operation but not sick enough to go on the list, his mother said.

“They don’t want to transplant the lungs too quickly,” White said. “It is a tricky and difficult surgery.

“They want to give him the lungs when he is sick enough and is not able to survive without them, but not when he is so sick he wont survive the transplant,” she said. “They also do not want to do it too early … (there is) a huge risk of death when you get this transplant.”

He will be evaluated every three months until doctors determine it is time for the transplant.

Doctors explained all the risks to White, who ultimately made his own decision.

“Sometimes you have to take a chance too, to do stuff,” said White, who hopes to work in the medical field one day. “If I don’t do it it’s not going to help me at all. If I do do it, it has a chance of helping me.”

Melissa Whites coworkers at Horizon Elementary School in Hanover Park have taken on the task of raising $70,000 to help cover the family’s expenses. Melissa White, a teacher at the school, will be be put on an unpaid leave of absence while they are in St. Louis. It could take longer than a year for a set of lungs to become available.

“She’s a staff member and a good friend,” said Erin Barham, White’s co-worker and community coordinator for Children’s Organ Transplant Association, a non-profit organization that helps raise money for families with ill children. “This is something that we just felt like we needed to do for them.”

A fundraising events for the Whites is being held today until 11 p.m. at Nick’s Pizza at 990 S. Randall Road in Elgin.

Fifteen percent of food sales will be given to the family, Barham said. Patrons must come in with a benefit flier, available on Greg White’s website at www.cotaforgregw.com under events. Donations also will be made through carry-out orders.

White, who had to stop attending high school in the fall due to his health, said he is moved by the out pouring of support.

“It is really nice of them,” he said. “We are really grateful that everybody is helping us like this.”