Cassie's Heart
Donation protected
Our sweet Cass was a fighter, she was kind, and beautiful, smart, and so much fun. When she was born and diagnosed with HLHS we knew her time would be cut short, but it didn't stop us giving her room to just be a kid. She played hard, took breaks when she needed them, jumped, and ran, and cartwheeled her way through childhood.
Cassie had 3 open heart surgeries by the time she was 4. The last one resulted in our first long term stay at Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake, where her fighting spirit was on full display. She insisted, every day, that we pack up the 2-4 water suction chest tube drain contraptions into a red wagon to go to the playroom, the waterfall outside, or the ice cream parlor. She recovered just in time to start pre-school without dragging an oxygen tank with her.
Over the years she had countless procedures, infusions, and examinations. Around 2014 she started having some medical issues, compounding to the point that in August of 2019 she was listed for a heart transplant. She was very fortunate to only wait until November 16th, 2019 to get her new heart. Unfortunately she had many complications that kept her hospitalized until April of 2020 and left her dialysis dependent.
She and I were in Salt Lake City a total of 10 months before we came home a few days short of her 18th birthday. The next three and a half years were the greatest gift a family can get. Cass was able to finish high school, go to school to get her CNA license, work at St. Luke's Nampa in the Med/Surg unit where she forged some beautiful friendships, went to concerts, and lived life like any other 18 year old. Unfortunately she had some rejection and other problems that led to a collapse in the hospital lobby after an infusion in June of 2022. She was injured, requiring several stitches in her forehead, one of which she joked about being Harry Potter in disguise. She was life flighted to Salt Lake, where her care was a 3 month balancing act between heart and kidney function. She came home in August , but never fully recovered. She had transitioned from 4 hour 3 times a week hemodialysis in clinic to peritoneal dialysis at home overnight, which allowed her some freedom. She traveled to Denver to spend time with her sister Courtney, she road tripped with her brother, Cameron, to Jackson, WY and all over Idaho. Then she developed an infection, forcing her back to hemodialysis (which she hated). She kept going, living life to its fullest, making plans, looking forward. After having to wait several months she was so excited to switch back to peritoneal dialysis. Her surgery was scheduled. It would require general anesthesia and would take about an hour. I took the day off work only because she insisted. She'd had this procedure twice, been sedated innumerable times, but we are always nervous. When she wasn't out of surgery after 90 minutes I texted Jim that I was getting nervous. Her doctor came in and said that she had coded and they were doing CPR. I called her dad, brother, and grandma to come to the hospital immediately. He came back, saying they found a pulse. HOPE! Then he came back, the pulse was gone, they were still doing CPR and had been for over an hour. They gave us scrubs so we could go into the OR and say our goodbyes.
Our sweet girl gave us 21 years of love and laughter, outweighing the heartbreak and sorrow by a landslide, but we are simply lost without her.
I mostly updated this to reach out to those who supported us via the fundraiser. It allowed me to be with her in Salt Lake. That time was precious. Thank you.
We knew that end of life expenses would be difficult, but we had no idea how astonishingly expensive. Just an urn can be several thousand dollars. A funeral, or plot, or internment is way out of our reach, so Cassie’s remains will stay with us until we can decide what to do.
Cass has big plans for her 21st birthday in a few months and we are going to follow them. She loved the princess tea party we threw for her eighth birthday so dress up in your favorite fairy tale attire to drink out of fancy china cups and snack on ridiculously tiny food on Saturday, June 17th 2023 starting at 2:00, at our home (6298 E Canyon Crossing Dr., Nampa).
If you'd like to help financially & avoid the fee...
Thank you so much for your support; it means the world.
Organizer
Michelle Haycock
Organizer
Nampa, ID