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Baby Jack's Little Big Heart

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My name is Jackie and I'm raising funds for my son Erik and his girlfriend, Kenzi, to help them through rough times while their son is in ICU in the UofA Hospital in Edmonton.
At 3 months old, Baby Jack was taken to emergency on June 25th, 2016, due to wheezing and having a hard time breathing. They did a scope down his throat and found that his trachea is too small in 3 separate areas. However, while the doctors were trying to figure out how to fix that, his little heart stopped. He was rushed into icu, intubated and sedated. It turns out Jack also has a heart defect called ALCAPA. When this defect occurs, blood that is lacking in oxygen is carried to the left side of the heart. Therefore, the heart does not get enough oxygen. When the heart muscle is deprived of oxygen, the tissue begins to die. This condition leads to a heart attack in the baby.
On June 27th, Jack had open heart surgery, so they could remove a ventricle and re-attach it in the proper spot. He had a mechanical pump working his heart for him. On Wednesday July 6th, they closed the sternum back up and on the 11th, they removed his breathing tube, drainage tubes and catheter. The let him wake up for a little bit. He looked around for a while and wiggled his wee toes. However, they had to sedate him again when he got cranky.
The doctors say Jack will be in the hospital for a few months, and may need a pump for his heart for a long period of time.
The kids just moved to Edmonton before this happened and they are trying to get settled in, get furniture together, etc. Their car needs a repair that Erik is unable to do and it's not going to run much longer without it. I would love to get them some diapers and formula for when Jack finally gets to come home, as well as some clothing for the little guy because even though he's sick, he's still growing fast. They have parking expenses at the hospital, and some help with rent and food would be appreciated so that if they can take some time away from work to be able to spend with their son. They didn't want to ask for help, so I am doing it on their behalf. I'll get them some groceries, set their car up at a mechanic and transfer everything to them to use as they need.   

Organizer

Jackie Dietrich
Organizer
Fort Macleod, AB

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