Our baby girl, Navy Jade Smith, is due any day now and will need immediate heart surgery after birth. She was diagnosed with a very rare and complex heart condition and will be cared for at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital in Nashville. Our family is preparing for a long stay away from home.. We’re asking for help to cover travel, housing, and living costs while we stay, and fight by her side during her critical first weeks of life.

Hi everyone,

Our baby girl, Navy Jade, is due to arrive any day now and she’s already our little warrior. During this pregnancy, we learned that Navy has a very complex congenital heart defect called single ventricle congenital heart disease with an unbalanced AV canal, pulmonary atresia, and abnormal vein connections (TAPVR and heterotaxy). In simple terms, Navy’s heart didn’t form in the usual way. She has only one working pumping chamber and will need multiple surgeries at Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital as soon as she’s born.

From the moment she takes her first breath, a team of doctors, nurses, and cardiologists will be waiting to stabilize her and start medicine to keep her blood flowing correctly. She’ll go straight to the NICU, and soon after, she’ll need heart surgery to help her survive. We’ve met with specialists from cardiology, neonatology, genetics, and palliative care at Vanderbilt to prepare for what’s ahead.

Between frequent trips from Chattanooga to Nashville for appointments and now preparing to stay there for Navy’s birth and recovery, we’ve been doing our best to keep everything together. But in July, Jacques broke his foot and was unable to work for two months. He only returned to work about three weeks ago, and while he’s been doing everything he can to get back on track, the setback put us behind right as we’re getting ready for Navy’s arrival.

We’re creating this GoFundMe to help with:

• Gas and travel to and from Vanderbilt

• Housing and meals during Navy’s NICU and surgery stay

• Lost income from time off work

• Everyday expenses so we can stay focused on being by Navy’s side

Any donation big or small will go directly toward helping us stay close to Navy and give her the best start possible. Even sharing this page or keeping her in your prayers means more than we can ever express.

Thank you for supporting our family through this journey. We truly believe that love and faith will carry Navy through every heartbeat.

With love,

Julia, Jacques and Navy Jade

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