<div>Dear Global Community,
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<div>We, the Lucero Olmos family, write to ask for support in the healing process of our 10 month old baby, Huitzillin Ixb’alam Lucero Olmos. We are an Indigenous family living in a rural community in the south of Puebla, Mexico.
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<div>Our daughter Huitzillin was born with <strong>Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) that measures 1cm (10mm)</strong>, or what many know as a heart murmur. The size of her VSD is above the threshold for small defects (which are &lt;3mm) and therefore is considered a large defect that is not compatible with life. In Huitzillin’s case it requires surgery, as it is causing her significant left-to-right blood shunting, leading to right-heart strain, pulmonary hypertension, and symptoms like poor feeding, sweating during feeds, fast breathing, failure to thrive, and infections.
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<div>Additionally, Huitzillin has a <strong>pulmonary banding</strong>, also known as <strong>pulmonary artery cerclage</strong>, which is a palliative surgery for congenital heart disease. It restricts excessive blood flow to the lungs, reducing pulmonary pressure and balancing circulation. This allows Huitzillin’s heart to develop more fully before a permanent repair. It is used in cases of pulmonary hyperperfusion and helps improve ventricular function and cardiac output, alleviating symptoms such as heart failure. 
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<div>To this day, she has already gone through three heart surgeries and is awaiting another major open-heart intervention. After the first surgery, Huitzillin suffered two episodes of <strong>pericardial effusion</strong>. Pericardial effusion is an excessive accumulation of fluid in the sac surrounding the heart (pericardium), which can prevent the heart from pumping properly, causing symptoms such as chest pain or pressure and shortness of breath, and can be a serious medical emergency if it compresses the heart. In both occasions, Huitzillin was showing these symptoms and had to be hospitalized immediately in order to drain out the excess fluid from her heart.
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<div>Due to these issues, it has been challenging for Huitzillin to gain weight and develop normally and healthy, as any other baby.
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<div>We have been blessed to find the support from the best cardiologists and heart surgeons in the state of Puebla, Mexico and they have provided Huitzillin with exceptional care and have even lowered their fees in some cases and offered some pro-bono work as a way to support us financially. 
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<div><strong>Nonetheless, we still have accumulated huge debt</strong> <strong>and continuously face new medical expenses.</strong> It has also been very taxing on Huitzillin's Spirit to undergo all of these surgeries and spend weeks of recovery at hospitals. It is important to mention that both of us as parents have not been able to work for over three months in order to be present for Huitzillin and our other two daughters, Ita’a and Kiahuitl.
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<div>At the same time, we have been referred to the National Institute for Cardiology and John Langdon Down Foundation in Mexico City for Huitzillin’s care. <strong>This means we have to travel five hours out into Mexico City,</strong> several times a year for the appointments.
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<div>While we are taking care of all the medical aspects of Huitzillin’s healing, we have also asked for the support of our dear friends who are <strong>traditional doctors and healers from around the world to help us out</strong> with ceremonies, offerings and Indigenous medicine, to ensure that Huitzillin can heal, thrive and grow healthy and strong in all aspects. We believe that we aren't just flesh and bones, we are also spiritual beings and sometimes these complex medical issues also have roots in deeper, ancestral and energetic conflicts.
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<div>Anyone who is a parent will understand that when it comes to our children, we will do anything and literally move mountains to help them thrive and keep them with us. This whole experience has been extremely scary for us, thinking that we may lose our baby at any moment, given the complexity of her condition, but also <strong>because of the lack of specialized medical care in our area and the need to travel long distances to secure care</strong> or in the event of emergencies like the episodes of pericardial effusion that she experienced.
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<div><strong>For these reasons, we are opening ourselves to receive support from anyone else who may be able to donate to our campaign </strong>so that we can cover all costs and expenses related to Huitzillin’s traditional healing and Western medical care. This includes but it’s not limited to:
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<li><strong>Travel expenses:</strong> we live in a rural community, 3 hours away from the nearest major city, where she attends doctor’s appointments, which happen every week and 5 hours from Mexico City, where Huitzillin will begin care at the National Institute for Cardiology and the John Langdon Down Foundation.
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<li><strong>Western medicine and supplements:</strong> Huitzillin takes a variety of expensive heart medications, formula and supplements for hypothyroidism, heart support and weight gain, daily.
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<li><strong>Western doctor appointment fees:</strong> cardiologist, pediatrician, endocrinologist, physical therapist, gastroenterologist, etc.
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<li><strong>*Indigenous doctor fees:</strong> materials for ceremony, travel costs &amp; time offered
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<li><strong>Pay off debt: </strong>we have taken out an emergency loan in order to pay for Huitzillin's hospital stays, surgeries, medicines, appointments and more. In Mexico you will *not* receive emergency care if you don't pay first, so we didn't really have an option.
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<li><strong>And most importantly, </strong>your donations will help cover her next open-heart surgery, which is quite expensive since it lasts between 5 to 7 hours and requires a special team and equipment to keep her heart going while they operate on her.
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<div>Thank you so much for considering supporting us &amp; we hope that whatever you decide to give today will come back to you ten-fold. May you be blessed!
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<div><strong>Con agradecimiento y cariño (with gratitude and love),</strong>
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<div><strong>Familia Lucero Olmos.</strong>
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Nola Glatzel

Dennis Gereritz

Kelly Tellez

Juanita Valenzuela

Maria Pezo

Elyse Angle

Mary Guerrero

Rosi Bustamante

Rebeca Loaisiga

Support Huitzillin's Journey to a Healthy Heart

Support Huitzillin's Journey to a Healthy Heart

Still $7,213 to go. Help us build momentum.