One of my dearest coworkers and friend, Kimberly Thomas, has a four-year-old daughter, Riley, with a serious heart defect that has been in place since birth. The medical term is Atrial Septal Defect or ASD, but in short terms, Riley’s heart is working in overtime due to a hole in the septum, the wall between the two upper chambers, causing oxygenated blood from the left atrium to mix with oxygen-poor blood on the right, which then flows to the lungs. As a result of that, the right side of the heart has to work extra hard, which can lead to right-sided heart failure, pulmonary hypertension, or arrhythmias. Riley will be undergoing a major heart surgery on June 18th to open up her chest and repair the hole with tissue from her own heart. During the surgery, her heart and lungs will be put on bypass. 

Riley has been through surgeries and tests her whole life, starting in the NICU for months. She went through surgeries on her heart, throat, stomach, and lungs, and dealt with collapsed lungs, infections, and feeding tubes, with her single mom working full-time with two jobs to take care of her family. Kim is currently out of work to care for her child as she undergoes yet another surgery at Dallas Children’s.

I kindly and gratefully ask for donations to help her pay for medical bills and cost of living while she is off work, staying at a hotel in Dallas, and caring for her children in this time of need. She always does anything for her kids and her community; now it’s time for us to give back to her.