Brody LaValle, Half a Heart, Twice the Fight

Hello, we are Brian and Deven LaValle. We recently welcomed our first son, Brody, into the world on November 11th, 2023.

Brody was born with a serious Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) known as Hypoplastic Right Heart Syndrome/Tricuspid Atresia. What this means is that his heart never developed a Tricuspid valve, and as a result, he has a heart with only a single ventricle. Or to put it simply, he only has half a heart.

Brody’s birthday was the single greatest day of our lives. Even while the doctors and nurses, almost immediately following Deven’s c-section, prepared Brody for transport to the cardiac NICU, I couldn’t help but wipe joyful tears out of my eyes.

Deven and I had spent years trying in vain to get pregnant on our own. After what seemed like an eternity spent being in and out of fertility clinics, countless injections and blood draws, and exhausting our entire life’s savings, we finally became pregnant in March 2023 through In-Vitro Fertilization (IVF). 

What should have been a time of great joy, however, soon became a time of panic, confusion, grief and devastation, when we received the news at the baby’s 20 week anatomy scan that they had identified an issue with his heart.

The news at first was devastating to hear, but since then we’ve been able to grow from this experience. We have learned not just how to be strong in the face of uncertainty, but that love is a force that can conquer any fear.

Brody still has a long way to go; his heart condition, aside from having no cure, requires at least 2 open heart surgeries before he turns 4 years of age. The first of these two, the Glenn procedure, is scheduled for February 7th.

Which brings me to the reason why I’m making this gofundme.

Our medical bills so far are over $15,000 in out of pocket costs, and this doesn’t even include his first major surgery this week. Our insurance has covered a lot, and we were aware treatment comes at a cost, but given the severity of Brody’s heart condition, it is going to far exceed our financial resources, especially in these first few years of his life.

Even so, we do not have any regrets for how these events have played out for us.

Brody has taught us not just how to be parents for the first time in our lives, but also how deep parents’ love for their child can run. We are in amazement at how effortlessly Brody has managed to endure all of these challenges, including spending 11 days in the NICU post-birth, a catheterization procedure to place a stent in his heart at 9 days old, long car rides to and from the hospital, and receiving endless echocardiograms after being released.

Any amount you are able to share with us goes directly to helping us pay our medical bills, and is appreciated more than you’ll ever know. But this is not a story of a family cursed by unfortunate circumstances. This experience has revealed a capacity for love and strength in our hearts that has left us in awe of how deep it runs, and knowing this love exists is, in the truest sense of the word, priceless.

It’s been an amazing journey already, and we can’t wait to see what comes next.

Brody Robert LaValle, born with only a single ventricle, but he’s got more than enough heart ❤️