Finn Bullers, 49, was a stalwart reporter at the Kansas City Star covering Johnson County for more than two decades.
However, today Bullers (Facebook photo) has fallen on hard times.
He is dealing with muscular dystrophy, type-1 diabetes, and is dependent on a ventilator to breathe. Due to the transition to KanCare on Dec. he briefly lost his home nursing care when he was dropped from his healthcare service at midnight on December 31.
The father of two children, 12 and 8, Bullers requires almost around-the-clock care. Luckily the state’s ombudsman was able to handle the care issue.
Dan Blom of the Prairie Village Post did an excellent story on Bullers’ situation, as did KMBC’s Martin Augustine (LINK). So far his former employer has not.
A former journalism student of Bullers’ wife, Anne, has also started a Facebook page to help raise funds for the family.
Bullers worked at the Quad Cities Times as an assistant region editor and was with the KC Star until 2010. He is a 1986 graduate of Iowa State University.
Photo credit: Prairie Village Post
THANKS FOR STORY
Thank you for sharing this, John. Finn is one of the best people I ever worked with, at the Star or anywhere else.
IN THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS
John, Finn has also shared his story on Chuck Kurtz’s blog site, viewfromthemidwest.com. I met Finn when he did a story for The Star on the “coffee gang” that was meeting at the Old 56 Restaurant in Olathe in the wake of the passing of the proprietor of the little coffee shop in downtown Olathe where the gang had been meeting. My father was part of that group, which met every Thursday morning. At any rate, I had followed Finn’s coverage of the Johnson County Commission for the paper and was rather disturbed when McClatchy decided to let him go along with a few other employees. He is certainly in my thoughts and prayers as he battles MD and diabetes amid adverse economic conditions that are working against people with limited means who need a great deal of personal care.
FRIEND OF FINN
I knew Finn when he was an undergrad journalism major at Iowa State — and beyond. You won’t find a nicer, more positive person on this planet. Even after his illnesses (already apparent at Iowa State) worsened. He has fought every inch of the way to stay positive and as healthy as he could — and he and Anne certainly did not deserve the pain and anguish created by the KanCare snafu.