Karsyn Clark’s Journey to Heart Surgery

Hi this is Melissa Karsyn’s Grammy!

We are not a family that typically asks for help but in a time like this Karsyn needs a village!

Karsyn is an absolutely beautiful 14 month old little girl. She is so loved by the best Mommy (Kate) & Daddy (Josh) and Doggie sister Cali as well has her grandparents, great grandparents, aunties, uncles, cousins and friends.

When Kate was pregnant, Karsyn was diagnosed with a very rare congenital heart defect. She has a double aortic arch, which creates a vascular ring . This ring compresses her esophagus and trachea making it difficult to breathe and eat.

It also comes with a chance of many other problems & genetic issues, but thankfully that is not the case for Karsyn.

Kate and Josh were told she likely wasn’t going to breathe at birth and prepared themselves for what was ahead, but Karsyn had other plans. She came into this world a fighter… breathing and screaming. This then meant she could wait a little bit for her surgery, get bigger and stronger.

We are very fortunate to have had the support of an amazing team of fetal cardiologists and specialists at Boston Children’s Hospitals throughout this journey.

She has had some complications due to the vascular ring, but they have been able to manage the issues so far. Karsyn has totally thrived in the first year of her life. She’s eating, walking (actually running), loves to say mum and dah—and even Cali! She is a fan of dirtbikes already and can’t get enough of them just like her Mom and Dad.

This fall Karsyn will have her planned heart surgery. While this is a difficult time, we know that she has the best team of doctors behind her.

Kate, Josh and Karsyn will travel to Boston Children’s for the surgery in October. She will need to be in the hospital for some time and the recovery will be a few months, but she will be back to normal, running around crazy before we know it.

Kate and Josh will have a long road of healthcare worries about Karysn ahead of them, and we’d like them to not have to also worry about out of pocket medical costs not covered by insurance, travel expenses, or lost pay from time out of work.

All donations will go directly towards defraying these costs.

Please consider donating whatever you can, every little bit helps. If you aren’t in a position to donate yourself, please share this and get the word out for us!

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

The Richard & Clark Families