Help Owen with a successful kidney transplant

I am creating this GoFundMe to help Owen's family with additional medical and living expenses during his kidney transplant. Owen is 4 years old, and this life-saving organ transplant will be life-changing for him and his family. The ways it will affect their lives are priceless. Owen will finally be able to do regular kid things! He will be able to go swimming and eat bananas! He won't have to endure countless medical procedures and will be healthy!

Owen is finally big enough to receive a kidney transplant, and the procedure will happen on April 11th. Jessica (Owen's Mom) is donating her kidney to him. She will be unable to lift things (like Owen’s little brother Jack) or drive for about three months. To monitor the kidney and increase chances of success, Owen will need to attend daily appointments, so Dan (Owen's Dad) will need to take several months off work. Dan provides the family with all their income while Jessica's full-time job is attending to appointments and medical needs. Bills, childcare, medical and additional expenses will add up quickly during a time that will be very stressful as two members of the family are undergoing major surgery.

Why does Owen need a kidney? When Owen was born, there were no indications of health issues. All the tests and scans up until delivery showed no problems. Unfortunately, there was a complication; Jessica had a placental abruption during delivery. This means that the placenta detached during delivery, cutting off Owen's blood flow and oxygen supply. It took the NICU team 23 minutes to bring him back to life. The first hours of his life were spent in the NICU as doctors and nurses fought to stabilize him enough to be transported to the Children's Hospital. Once there, they started working to keep him alive. They did not know what Owen's quality of life would be and recommended comfort care (keeping him pain-free until he passed away naturally). Jessica and Dan chose to fight, so the NICU doctors did everything they could to help him stay with us. The family spent seven months in the hospital (six in the ICU) until he could go home. Owen has been on dialysis since birth and has been in the hospital too much in his short life.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read Owens's story. Through it all, Owen is still so happy and full of life! This is the light at the end of the tunnel for this family, and they need a village to help them through. Any little bit helps, and every penny is deeply appreciated.