Man leaves to get lung transplant, thieves burglarize his home

By Meghan Kalkstein KATU News and KATU.com Staff Published: Oct 5, 2012 at 12:51 AM PDT

PORTLAND, Ore. - A man fighting for his life got a second chance, but just as he readied himself to settle into his renewed life, he received a terrible call.

Steve Mathisen had a friend looking after his house in a Southeast Portland neighborhood while he went to get life-changing surgery in Seattle. Days before he came home, he received the devastating news that thieves took advantage of a home that means so much him.

"I had probably six weeks to live. I was sitting on death's doorstep," Mathisen said.

He still wears a mask to avoid dust, but he's come a long way. After years of fighting, he finally got the call to head to Seattle for a lung transplant. Two months and a successful surgery later, Mathisen was ready to go home to start over again. But Tuesday he and his wife got another call.

"A friend came by to clean the house, get things ready for us, and discovered the house was a mess," he said. "The house looked like a tornado hit it."

Drawers were dumped upside down on their bed and their belongings were tossed on the floor.

Police say the thief broke in through a back window and left with money, jewelry and even TVs.

"I was in tears. I didn't know whether to scream or cry," Mathisen said.

He was so looking forward to coming home. Because last year, volunteers with Rebuilding Together Portland helped redo his home to make life easier. But he said this was just a setback, because now he has his whole life ahead of him.

"I have a second chance on life, which means more to me than anything in this house except for my wife," Mathisen said.

Mathisen said the thieves also took his spare car keys which was something else that was unnerving.

He did file a police report and they were out Wednesday checking for fingerprints.

To donate to Mathisen or any transplant person, you can go to helphopelive.org. To donate specifically to Mathisen, you'll need his name.

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14 comments

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DeaconBugg

This is heart breaking.Â I hope they catch the cowards who violated this man and his wife's life.Â Congratulations on a new life.

jpk

It seems like a lot of people knew he was going to be gone for awhile. Perhaps he even posted his absence on social media. This burg and theft is absolutely disgusting! I would like to add that I am constantly amazed by people who sink this low to support their drug habits at the expense of others!

CTWU

1 Like

Sorry, Mr. Mathison, that you have to deal with this when you should be celebrating your new life.Â I hope you have changed the locks, though, on the house and car and whatever else they might have gotten a key to.

Having been a victim of a similar robbery (but not while I was away -- just gone shopping), I can sympathize with the feeling of loss and frustration.Â You'll no doubt discover countless things missing or broken as you sort through your life.Â Your sense of security is gone.Â You'll get it back -- eventually -- but it will never be the same.Â Hopefully the police also gave you a few tips about securing your home and making sure windows and doors are properly locked and secured and went over any weak points your house might have.

If you have homeowners insurance, you're going to find that it isn't enough or doesn't cover the most valuable things because many of those are sentimental and are priceless to you but have little monetary value to others (they took my grandmother's costume jewelry -- the only thing my sister and I had of hers -- and most likely threw it in the trash).

This looks to me to not be a targeted burglary.Â This looks like the typical break in and get out kinda situation.Â That's why everything is tossed about -- the burglars have only minutes to get in and get out.Â This was probably done in less than 10 minutes.

I'm with str1ngb3nd3r.Â Karma'll find those who did this to you and your family, Mr. Mathisen.Â The justice will fit the crime but you may never know it.Â Karma has already found you and will remain by your side.Â Good luck on the remainder of your recovery and enjoy your new life (after getting better locks and reinforcements where needed).

washcomom

1 Like

Did someone post this surgery on Facebook? Thieves are definitely scanning for targets to hit.Â

I'm sorry for the ransacking of the house, but I truly hope this transplant works for Mr. Mathisen. I had a friend who had a double lung transplant who died 2 years ago. He fought valiantly. The masks were never removed from his face, so his girls created some pretty crazy ones. The family took it in stride, which was great.Â

LandCruzer

3 Like

Crack Heads dont care why you are gone from your home they just care that you are gone... and sometimes they dont even care if you are home.

Wil Theo

This is not right.Â This should not be happening.Â This is why Portland is not a safe city of live!

OSUx2

Meh, Portland is about as safe of a large city as they come.Â At least he wasn't on the receiving end of a firing pistol.Â Yes, it's totally sickening that this happened to him, but Portland is much safer than many other cities.Â Try urban Detroit or LA or Oakland or Miami sometime and see how PDX stacks up, safety wise.

CTWU

Â @OSUx2 Yep.Â Having been incapacitated and connected to oxygen, it could have been much worse if Mr. Mathisen (pre-transplant days) had been home when these jerks decided to break in.

And, you're right.Â Portland's crime statistics are no where near as bad as other big (and shrinking) cities.Â Miami is downright unnerving for this northwesternern girl when I've visited (only to hop on a cruise ship a couple of times).Â They definitely do things differently there.Â I remember back in the 90's (I think?) when drivers in rental cars were being targeted for crime so they changed the license plates and fleet stickers the vehicles had to try and make the rentals blend in better with the city.