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Foster's Fight- A Rare Congenital Heart Defect Journey

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On September 25th 2024, my sister Adriane and her husband Jon welcomed their first baby Foster into the world. At the 20 week anatomy scan during pregnancy Foster was diagnosed with a major congenital heart defect requiring multiple life saving surgeries after birth. Foster's defect is rare, one of only 18 in the world. This has required teams of surgeons from all over to come up with a plan to save him.

Foster underwent a cardiac cath surgery at 2 weeks old with the hope to extend his time prior to open heart surgery. He was able to come home on tube feeds and a cardiac monitor before ultimately being transported back to Boston in acute heart failure. He was rushed to Boston 2 weeks ago and today, the day before Thanksgiving, Foster and his team of surgeons, will spend a daunting 15 hours in open heart surgery (his first of many).

Adriane and Jon have spent weeks in Boston at his bedside between the NICU and cardiac ICU. Jon has exhausted any saved leave and Adriane's maternity leave will soon come to an end. Unfortunately, there is no end in sight. There has been no normalcy in the joy of welcoming a first baby.

They have insurance but both work in Healthcare, and as we all know, healthcare workers themselves tend to have the worst insurance in an already broken system. Foster's care is likely well into the millions already with risky high cost transports, nicu stays and open heart surgery along with many procedures, scans and specialists to develop an individual plan for his super complex anatomy. Between deductibles, costs for residing in Boston, transportation, and lost wages (not to mention they are in the final stages of building their house) I am looking to take one thing off their plate. They refuse to ask for help and are very private with his journey, but as he endures this surgery today, I sit here helpless, wishing I could do more. I am asking from the bottom of my heart if anyone has any interest in showing your support, please consider donating to help them survive this horrible uphill battle. I know people have asked how they can help and this is all I can come up with. They deserve a slight reprieve and if costs could be one thing we can all help with, I know they (and I) will be eternally grateful. Let's show them how big our community is! If you can't donate, share. Or send some well wishes that he comes out on the other side today. Thank you so much from our family to yours.

(Please do not reach out to them directly. The prefer to stay private and process best with minimal interaction at this point. I am happy to answer questions and can update this page when we have new information)
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Donations 

  • JOHN SLAVING
    • $100
    • 2 mos
  • Walter Pajak
    • $150
    • 2 mos
  • Danielle Riccio O'Brien
    • $50
    • 2 mos
  • Daniel Schettine
    • $100
    • 2 mos
  • robert moore
    • $100
    • 2 mos
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Organizer

Angela Bonnell
Organizer
Plummer Mill, ME

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