Friends, family, and kind-hearted strangers who this reaches. My lifelong friend Jessica and her beautiful family are going through a heartbreak that no one should have to endure. While mourning the loss of their sweet baby boy Markie Jr., they are in need of help to relieve the financial burden that has added up.

On October 8th, Markie Jr. entered this world weighing only 2 lbs 11 ounces with all odds stacked against him. Markie was born with multiple brain abnormalities that were spotted in an anatomy scan prior to birth. He was immediately brought to the NICU where he started off needing oxygen, a feeding tube, and test after test. Once he was born, his family was told he would never walk, talk, see, eat, swallow, have memories, sing the ABC’s, or say “I love you.” The heartbreaking list goes on and on, and yet his family stayed positive and strong together.

Markie’s family instantly revolved their life around him. With 3 kids at home and the hospital being 45 minutes away, Mom spent days and then Mom and Dad alternated nights. They split rides to and from school and spent weekends at the Ronald McDonald House so their kids could see their baby brother as much as possible. He was their entire world.

After platelet transfusions, blood transfusions, extremely low blood sugars, oxygen support, and feeding tubes, he was remarkably weaned off of oxygen and began drinking bottles by mouth. However, after just a couple of days with such amazing progress, he took a turn for the worse and his heart became enlarged. It was so large that it could not pump blood properly, and the medication wasn’t helping. He was too small to have a machine pump his blood for him and too sick to be placed on a list for a heart transplant. His parents were told on a Friday that there was nothing more they could do, other than keep him comfortable, and on Sunday he passed away. Although his family wishes they had more time, they are eternally grateful for the 44 days they got to spend with him.

This family has run into multiple hurdles since Markie arrived, including moving the week he was born, unexpected car troubles and expenses, vet visits for their family pet Rosemary, and of course, medical bills galore. The donations from this will go towards bills and expenses to help the Hayward-Harris family so they can focus on their 3 other children who need their love and support more than ever right now without the underlying stress of money.