Support Carter's Healing Journey

Hi, my name is Rose. This GoFundMe page was created for my son, Carter.

On November 22nd, what we thought was an ordinary respiratory sickness evolved into abscesses in Carter’s lungs, as well as pneumonia and staph. One abscess is 5x5 cm, which is very large for an 8-month-old baby. I have taken Carter in and out of doctors’ offices over eight times in the last month, including emergency room visits, his PCP’s office, and walk-in clinics. Nobody could figure out what was wrong with him.

He was tested for COVID, RSV, strep throat, and pertussis, but all came back negative. He had been suffering from 103+ degree fevers, constant vomiting, and persistent diarrhea at home with me since November 22nd.

On December 10th, I took him to yet another follow-up doctor’s appointment after an ER visit, and he was finally admitted to McKenzie-Willamette Hospital. In the hospital, they performed x-rays, ultrasounds, and blood cultures. It was determined that he needed to be transported to Randall Children’s Hospital in Portland so he could receive the care and surgeries he needed. We were transported via ambulance.

At Randall, more testing and x-rays were done, and doctors discovered Carter might have had a congenital diaphragmatic hernia. This is rare, and the OHSU surgeon told me this happens to 10 or fewer babies in Oregon per year. However, after a surgical procedure, the surgeons discovered it wasn’t a hernia.

After the procedure, Carter had trouble breathing and has been hooked up to a ventilator for the last two days. He will likely need to remain on the ventilator for at least several more days. Once he can breathe independently, he will have to undergo another surgery to drain the large abscess.

More blood culture results have come in, and he has also been diagnosed with pneumonia and staph.

I am asking for your kind donations to help us through this tough time while I temporarily live here in Portland in the ICU unit with Carter. Your donations will help us with these unexpected medical, hotel, and travel expenses to and from Portland to Eugene.

We pray for Carter’s healing through Christ Jesus. We pray that the doctors have the wisdom to perform these risky procedures. We also pray for peace for our family and everyone involved.

We dearly appreciate all the love and support from our family and friends. Please don’t feel like you have to donate—prayers are powerful and will help Carter heal, too.

Update 12/15

We spoke this morning with the surgical team here while doing rounds and if Carter’s large abscess is no smaller in size from the antibiotics, they think it is best to perform the procedure to drain it. They will give a couple more days of monitoring to see how the antibiotics are working. He is still on the ventilator, but we are optimistic that the drs can remove it sooner than later. Carter is able to open his eyes now. The nurses got the OK to lower sedation a bit. And I was able to finally hold my baby. We all miss him so much and this experience has truly been one of the hardest things we’ve ever experienced. Please continue to pray for Carter’s healing and keep him in your thoughts. We know that God is so good and his timing is perfect. And we are putting our faith fully in Him. Thank you all for the love and support you have shown our family. We love you guys so much and can’t wait to have our chunky little guy back.