Hi everyone,

My name is Stacie Porter. I started this fundraising page for my nephew Erik who's currently waiting to receive a heart transplant, in hopes of helping his parents cover any expenses not covered by medical insurance.

If you know Erik (also known as Erik-William), you would describe him as a man of few words, but he is by far the most caring, generous, and hard-working person I know.

What you might not know is that Erik was born on January 15, 1998 with two congenital heart defects: transposition of the great arteries and missing coronary arteries on his left ventricle. He was medivacked to Honolulu and then to San Diego Children's Hospital.

When he was four days old, he had his first of many open heart surgeries to correct the transposition of the great arteries. However, the second congenital heart defect was the problem they couldn't really fix, which over the years, would cause his heart to weaken and get enlarged.

When he was 17 years old, his cardiologist started seeing his heart weaken to the point where they implanted a defibrillator/pacemaker to control his heart arrhythmia (basically an irregular heartbeat).

As a 24-year-old, he's beaten all odds and proved multiple people wrong. Fast forward to today, and his heart is now giving up. He was Medivac to Cedar-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles and is currently awaiting a heart transplant.

Erik has already given up so much for his health. He's a student at the University of Manoa working to attain his bachelor's degree in Psychology. Now he's forced to put a pause on his education due to his situation. Please help me give my family some much-needed relief so they can focus on Erik's health journey. He deserves to be able to enjoy the things he's worked so hard for.

As a family, we believe in the power of community. We've seen the miracles and joys that can happen when people come together for a common goal. We're immensely thankful for the countless years of prayers, love, and support Erik has received so far. Please share this fundraiser and know that all donations make a huge impact regardless of the amount. If you can, please add encouraging words that we can read to Erik. Thank you for everything in advance, and we will be eternally grateful for anything you can do to support Erik's recovery.

From the bottom of my heart, I appreciate you for taking the time to read about and support my nephew's journey.