Janel, Kevin, and baby Heitkamp

Janel, Kevin, and baby Heitkamp campaign photo, 1 of 3Janel, Kevin, and baby Heitkamp campaign photo, 1 of 3

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334 donors
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$46,452 raised of $30K

Janel, Kevin, and baby Heitkamp

Janel, Kevin, and baby Heitkamp

0% complete

$46,452 raised of $30K

334 donations
Donation protected
This is a story of a pair of sweethearts wanting to have a family. 
Janel and Kevin are in love and decided to make another sweet human. They succeeded and now they have some challenges ahead. Janel is currently 33 weeks pregnant and experiencing preeclampsia symptoms that are being monitored. The baby girl growing inside Janel has a congenital heart defect called D transposition of the great vessels. In babies with d-TGA, oxygen-poor blood from the body enters the right side of the heart. But, instead of going to the lungs, the blood is pumped directly back out to the rest of the body through the aorta. Oxygen-rich blood from the lungs entering the heart is pumped straight back to the lungs through the main pulmonary artery. In order to save her she will need to have open heart surgery directly after birth and Atlanta does not have the right hospital for the job. Excellent Atlanta specialists have been taking meticulous care of Janel and baby and have insisted on a company move. This baby must be born in Cincinnati, OH. The baby's heart is the size of a walnut and requires a top pediatric cardiologist to perform the high risk procedure in a timely manner. The baby also has some growth and chromosomal issues, but these factors are secondary to the heart condition. 
Janel and Kevin must leave in a week to start doctor appointments in Ohio. The path moving forward is only certain in location. Everything else is unknown. They hope to get into the Ronald McDonald House to stay while the baby has her procedures and Janel heals from childbirth, but have no guarantees. 
The support you give will go to help them find housing close to the hospital, pay co-pays and out of pocket expenses while they are away from full time jobs. This money will help them in many ways, but will also give them breathing room to focus on healing and keeping their baby girl comfortable while she adjusts to life on the outside with a repaired heart.
Kevin and Janel are scared, but hopeful. Each day is tough, but they are full of love. These last few weeks of pregnancy are hard in general and to add confirmed medical issues to the bill takes an even greater toll. They are grateful for every day and feel so blessed in life, so it took much convincing to allow us to share their story, and greater still to request any form of support. 
Let's help this family.  Any amount is wonderful and all love and prayers will be immensely appreciated.
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Co-organizers3

A.c. Logan-Johnson
Organizer
Atlanta, GA
Britain Riley
Co-organizer
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