A Video Of Justin Giving MBA students advice

I love you brother!  It takes about 5 seconds for the audio to start so hit play, wait for it... then enjoy.

How He Died

http://justinmarcucci.blogspot.com/2011/03/how-did-my-brother-justin-die-answer.html

Justin and Stephanie; Story in University of Chicago, Booth News

http://www.chicagobooth.edu/news/2011-08-29-marcucci.aspx

Legacy of Booth Alumnus Carries across Expansive Network

Justin Marcucci, ’05 and his wife Stephanie—who previously served as associate director, marketing and communications for the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship—were long-time members of the Booth community and great supporters of the school.

This past spring, a number of websites, including a memorial fund, were established to remember Justin, who passed away unexpectedly due to a rare case of idiopathic hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

“He definitely felt that many of his achievements came from the knowledge he gained while at Chicago Booth and from the network of alumni he got to know there,” said Jared Marcucci, Justin’s brother.

As a student, Justin studied entrepreneurship and finance. He also competed in the New Venture Challenge, placing third in the business case competition along with cofounders Peter Shannon, ’05; Jon Mano, ’05; and Oliver Banz, ’05, for Crazy Waters, Inc.

In his most recent role, post-graduation, Marcucci worked for eBay in San Jose, Calif., as general manager for Fashion Vault, a component of eBay Marketplaces that focuses on clothing, shoes, and accessories. According to his brother, Marcucci’s career was closely linked to his time at Booth.

“Justin knew he wanted to work in Silicon Valley in a start-up business in the tech industry,” he said. “His MBA from Booth catapulted his career toward his life goals in business. Justin seemed to always be advocating for the university and felt very fortunate to have had the opportunity to attend Chicago Booth.”

In fact, it was Justin’s expansive professional and alumni network—bolstered by his time at Booth—that first motivated Jared to create the numerous websites in his brother’s honor. Hoping to preserve memories for Justin’s family, friends, and colleagues around the globe—including numerous contacts from his time working in London and Prague—Jared created an archive of photos, videos, and a blog that raises awareness about the medical condition that led to Justin’s tragic death.

“I thought that the many people who knew and loved Justin would benefit from having a website that they could visit for updates and to learn more about what had happened,” he explained. The blog itself received more than 10,000 hits in the first few weeks and continues to draw increasing numbers of visitors.

An educational fund for Marcucci’s children—three sons, Grant, Kellen, and Lennox; and daughter, Johnna, who was born in August—has been created by his colleagues at eBay and is currently linked to the numerous websites.

For more information and to learn more about the memorial fund, please refer to the websites below.

—Kate Fratar

•   Facebook memorial page

•   Blog site by Marcucci’s brother, Jared

•   Archive of downloadable videos photos

A Paypal education fund for Marcucci’s children has been started by his colleagues at Ebay. Information for making a contribution is available on the blog.

1 widow 4 children, including brand new beautiful baby girl!

1 Widow and 4 Children (including brand new beautiful baby girl!)

Justin's friends and family established a Paypal education fund for his children. To donate, go to www.paypal.com and click on the Send Money tab. Enter the dollar amount you wish to donate, & indicate that your payment is for Friends & Family. Next enter as the email Address:

justinmarcuccifamilyfund@gmail.com

in the To box. Anyone can donate, even if you don't have a Paypal acct. Please post in your status if you feel so inclined. If you would rather not use Paypal to donate a special fund has been created for Justin's family and Children. You can mail a check

UBS Financial Services FBO Stephanie Marcucci

And send it to:
UBS Financial Services 
601 W. Riverside Ste. 1200
Spokane, WA 99201

All donations of any amount will be a great blessing for his family. Thank you.

Baby Johnna Justin Marcucci Is born

Baby Johnna Justin Marcucci was born on august 23rd 2011: 7 pounds 11 ounces, 20.5 inches long 


Yes, her name is spelled "Johnna Justin" but I'm pronouncing it "John-uh | Jus-teen."  lots of people have been asking me. I know it's confusing, but it's also very sentimental. And it works with the "Banana-Fanna" song, so Justin would totally approve. Hee...hee. ~ Stephanie Marcucci 




Check back regularly as we add updates and more pictures.

36 years old

Justin would have turned 36 years old on August 13, 2011 but it was not to be. The day was another day without Justin. He is gone. Now I know the proper thing to say to make everyone feel comfortable is that "he is with us in spirit and always in our hearts."

However, he is not on the other end of my cell phone when I have a new funny joke to tell him or a story I want to tell him. He is not here to offer his advice. His birthday was another reminder of this, and "this" is real. Justin is dead.

He will not be there to cut the umbilical cord when Stephanie has their baby. There is no anger or bitterness but rather just reality. I miss him everyday and love and cherish all the memories and good times I was fortunate to have with him. I feel no shame or guilt in stating what may be uncomfortable to read but I would rather man up and state reality. He is gone and it sucks, it really does suck and that is ok and I feel no need to sugar coat this or say something to make myself feel better about it.

I can't imagine what it would be like to have him gone and to have had unfinished business or bad blood. Instead because of his great ability to be present and involved in my life, it was  and is all good. I can find celebration in that.

Happy Birthday Bro. Thank you for being my best friend and brother and being involved in my life and present in my life while you were living.

Like the lyrics say by Arcade Fire:

If I could have it back
All the time that we wasted
I'd only waste it again
If I could have it back
You know I would love to waste it again
Waste it again and again and again

Memorial to Justin from BYU, Marriott School of Business

The video takes a about 10 seconds to start after clicking on play. The first 10 seconds are just a still frame.

I stumbled across this video on You Tube, putting in "justin marcucci" in the search box. This is a great tribute to who Justin is and what he did to serve others.

This video can be found on You Tube and on the Box website as well:

You Tube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3AQROIZZZk

The Box link:
https://doctorsbag.box.net/shared/z66e8i7ypu


I thought I would post it here as well for those of you have not see it yet.

Justin's Official Death Certificate Diagnosis

"I just opened a letter from the Coroner's office. The final death certif has been issued. At last. Reason for death is listed as: Complications of Idiopathic Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy."  ~ via email from Stephanie Marcucci 

This is what we were hoping for as this is what the diagnosis actually was and believe it or not often time pathologists as well as many other doctors will word things inaccurately to help themselves.

This diagnosis is not a good one for pathologists because it means "I do not know what happened!" (Idiopathic) for an unknown reason Justin's healthy enlarged heart stopped without any medical explanation or reason. 

"I do not know what or why a slightly enlarged but healthy heart with no pathology or signs of badness caused the heart to stop." =  "Complications of Idiopathic Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy"

Pathologists think this diagnosis makes them look bad when in fact it is just being honest. I had a handful of conversations with the Pathologist and at one point he was trying anything to pull any unrelated diagnosis (possibilities that he knew were not the cause and he knew that I knew as well). 

Ultimately I was not sure which road he would take and it is comforting to me he took the high road. 

The diagnosis that I described in the posting on this blog entitled:

"How did my brother Justin Die? Answer = Sudden Cardiac Arrest"

I do not think I included any info about Justin's healthy enlarged heart as we did not want to cause any fixation or confusion at that time prior to having an "official diagnosis" although we did know at the time of the autopsy his heart was "enlarged but healthy", the pathologist also referred to it as an "elite athletic heart" and there were no signs of obstruction or congenital defects or defects of any kind that would have caused the sudden cardiac arrest. The original blog is included below:

http://justinmarcucci.blogspot.com/2011/03/how-did-my-brother-justin-die-answer.html

The sudden cardiac arrest still stands as discussed and it was caused by Idiopathic Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. Also, this term still causes lots of confusion because 10 - 15 years ago the exact term Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) (note no idiopathic here) used to describe a disease we now call Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy  (HOCM) and even in the medical community these terms are misused and are very different diseases. HOCMs is what causes young athletes in their 20's or even younger to drop dead (sudden cardiac arrest) on the basketball court and is a congenital defect that can be passed on to children and is actually an unhealthy enlarged heart.

So there it is, and although this may leave a lot of unanswered questions it is the correct diagnosis. It is essentially a bunch of smart sounding medical mumbo jumbo for Justin died of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) secondary to unknown causes, although his heart was enlarged it was healthy and there are no signs that this enlargement played a roll in the SCA at all. There is no medical explanation or physical finding, laboratory finding or imaging modality / ekg finding for why his heart stopped. It just stopped. 

The only thing I would say is to be careful of reading outdated material about Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy which Justin did not have, he had Idiopathic Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy which medically is a big difference and often not understood and even misused by healthcare professionals. Several flawed internet sites will discuss Idiopathic Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy as though it is HCM or HOCM and there is much confusion with these terms. There is also a unhealthy heart idiopathic hypertrophic cardiomyopathy discussed ( where the unhealthy heart description is left off or silent and just a given) as well as a healthy heart idiopathic hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (with the "healthy heart" left off) which further adds to the confusion.

If all of this is just a bunch of words, know this much;  Justin had a healthy heart and the doctors do not know why it stopped. God did not leave any evidence behind at the scene.

I am grateful for a good honest pathologist who could of easily worded the diagnosis in an incorrectly, inaccurate manner to bolster his own ego and chose to go with the medical data instead. This is another miracle in my mind as I have seen it go the other way so often. 

jared

Childhood Friends PLan Memorial Reception For Justin Marcucci

Note link for information: http://www.box.net/shared/snaj9f65sg


Hi everybody, 

Thank you everyone for the continued outpouring of love and prayers which are definitely sustaining us.

Please find below an announcement that was sent out last week by one of Justin’s friends, Lindsay LaRock, (a neighbor of ours growing up). Right after Justin passed away, and she learned of the funeral in San Jose, she decided invite others from Bow Mar South, and Littleton High School over to her house for a small get together to celebrate Justin’s life.  Matt Sheffield sent her the photo/music compilation dvd that was shown in the RS room at the chapel from the funeral, as well the as the funeral audio.

I spoke with Lindsay and we put together a tentative agenda for the get-together. Details for the time and location are in Lindsay’s email below.  So, those that can make it, great. Those who can’t, no problem.

I think this will be a great opportunity to people who were childhood friends of Justin to get together and process, celebrate, and catch up…

Justin Marcucci (whom many of us knew and loved and who grew up in Bow Mar South) passed away suddenly March 16, 2011 from Sudden Cardiac Arrest. Please join us for an evening as we celebrate Justin's life by sharing stories and memories. 

When: Saturday, April 9, 2011

Time: 4:00 - 9:00pm

Where: 5849 Snowberry Drive, Littleton, CO 80123

Please bring the following items:

1. Something to share - an appetizer or drinks.

2. A write-up of the memories you had with Justin. We will have these available for people to read and will also compile a book to send to his wife and children. You may also email it to Lindsay at lindsaylumpkin@mac.com beforehand. This is not a requirement to come though.

3. Please bring any copies of any pictures you have of Justin (if you have any). We will display these at the celebration and also send them to Justin's wife and children.

RSVP to Lindsay and help to spread the word.

Also visit justinmarcucci.blogspot.com

Sincerely,
Lindsay Lumpkin (LaRock) and Otis Moore

A Link to All things Justin Marcucci

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!! There has been so much love and good vibes sent our way and to Justin's family that we are all very grateful for friends and family like you that have all offered loving thoughts, prayers, comments, and support.

Please feel free to click on the link below and it will take you to a website where we are archiving memories, funeral audio, tribute videos, pictures, etc. If you have something you would like to add to the archive site you can contact me.

Please share the link.

Archive site with downloadable videos, pictures, etc (will continually be updated):

http://www.box.net/shared/z66e8i7ypu

How did my brother Justin Die? Answer = Sudden Cardiac Arrest

What is sudden cardiac arrest? 
Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is a condition in which the heartbeat stops abruptly and unexpectedly. This usually is caused by ventricular fibrillation (VF), an abnormality in the heart's electrical system. The ventricles (the two muscular chambers of the heart that pump blood) may flutter or quiver erratically (ventricular fibrillation). Consequently blood flow to the body and, most importantly, to the brain stops. The person suffering from sudden cardiac arrest will lose consciousness and die In fact, the victim is often clinically dead within 30 seconds of this event. Although their heart will continue to "flutter" and their eyes will remain open and even look like they have life in them for several minutes and even hours in some cases, they are brain dead within minutes. 

Is SCA the same as a heart attack? 
No. A heart attack is a condition in which a blood clot suddenly blocks a coronary artery, resulting in the death of the heart muscle supplied by that artery (unless the clot is opened within a few hours). Heart attack victims usually experience symptoms such as chest discomfort or pain and remain conscious. Most people who have a heart attack survive the event. Some will develop an SCA. Other people have an SCA independently from a heart attack and without warning signs. SCA results in death, is generally untreatable, and is confirmed upon autopsy.

Who is at risk for SCA? 
Most commonly people who die from SCA have an underlying cardiac condition. They have heart disease, like congestive heart failure, previous heart attacks and are older with a myriad of health problems. These are the kind of people who often die from SCA. 

However, SCA does occur in active people who are healthy and have no known medical conditions occasionally. In these patients, the cause of SCA may not ever be determined, even with an autopsy. This was true for Justin as well, a full autopsy was completed. 

Now let's talk about Justin.  Did he have a heart condition? No, his heart was healthy on autopsy. There were no signs of congenital diseases, like Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy (the condition that kills young healthy athletes). There were no signs of stenosis, dilatation, obstruction, plaques,  or ischemia. In other words Justin's heart was a healthy heart. The official diagnosis will be Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) of unknown etiology.   All of us have irregular heartbeats from time to time. Some call them palpitations, some call them skipped beats.  Patients come into the Emergency Room all the time with palpitation and skipped beats. Thankfully most of the time our hearts recognize these abnormal beats and correct for them. We might not even realize it has occurred. Unfortunately, in some individuals their heart does not recognize this abnormal beat and does not correct it, which causes the heart to go into ventricular fibrillation (VF), leading to a quick, painless brain death followed by full body death. When SCA occurs, often the person has underlying heart disease or a heart condition and this is the cause of the SCA. When SCA occurs in a healthy individual like Justin without a heart condition we are often left without any answers as to why the heart did not recognize the abnormal beat and fix it or "re-start" the regular rhythm. 

Justin died long before Stephanie heard his "snoring" and tried to awake him. The "snoring" sound was most likely agonal breathing or "death rattle" indicating Justin had been brain dead for several minutes, if not longer. There was no saving Justin. He was truly taken from this earth and went peacefully in his sleep without any knowledge of what was happening. He kissed Stephanie goodnight and that was his last memory. 

I was able to speak with the coroner before, during, and after the autopsy, and, thanks to Staci,  we have many of the medical records including the paramedic and ER run sheets, and spoke briefly with the doctors who treated Justin. I have tried to write this explanation is in a straight forward manner but as you can imagine there is nothing straight forward about losing my healthy 35 year old brother and best friend.

Please feel free to post comments or ask questions. I am happy to answer any questions or better explain for those who feel they want a better understanding. 

Sincerely,

Jared Marcucci 

Justin Marcucci, One of the all time greats!

On March 16th 2011, my brother, best friend to many, father, husband, uncle, cousin, mentor, died.