It breaks our hearts to even have to construct this page. On Sunday, March 6, 2016, our dear friends Steve and Hope Villano, had to say goodbye to their precious 5 month old daughter, Stephanie Hope. As if having to lose one child isn’t hard enough, sadly Stephanie is the SECOND child the Villano’s have had to plan a funeral for. Not too long after Steve and Hope got married, they found out they were pregnant. On December 11, 2011, the Villano’s welcomed their firstborn, Jameson into this world. Quickly, it became apparent that little Jameson was having problems and he was rushed into the NICU. After in-depth testing,  they received devastating news…Jameson had a congenital heart defect. On January 20, 2012, after going into a somewhat routine procedure to alleviate some strain on his heart, little Jameson passed away before the doctors could do his procedure. He was only 5 weeks old.

After grieving the loss of their little guy, Steve and Hope decided to try again for a baby. On February 26, 2013, they welcomed Angelina Elizabeth into this world. Little Angelina is a happy, healthy, spunky 3 year old who loves Paw Patrol.

Wanting Angelina to have the bond and friendship of a sibling, they decided to try for another child, thinking the worst was behind them. Because of the unique nature of Jameson’s heart condition, Hope’s pregnancy was closely monitored and their baby underwent extensive prenatal testing, including detailed cardiology imaging. It was at this appointment where Steve and Hope were dealt a gutwrenching blow: their baby had several problems, including tricuspid valve atresia, with a ventricular septal defect and a right-sided diaphragmatic hernia. They were devastated. The doctors gave her less than a 1% chance of survival and referred them to UCSF Children’s Hospital. UCSF gave the Villano’s a glimmer of hope…they felt confident that not only would Stephanie survive but they could perform the necessary surgeries to ensure a relatively “normal” life. Stephanie spent over 2 months at UCSF and was sent home with an Ng feeding tube and all necessary equipment for Steve and Hope to care for her at home.  Just 2 weeks ago, Stephanie was deemed healthy enough to undergo her first major surgery…the 2nd surgery in a line of 3 to “fix” her many medical issues.

Unfortunately, little Stephanie would never make it to that surgery. On Sunday March 6th, Hope woke and went to turn off Stephanie’s feeding machine, like she does every morning. Except this time, what Hope found was devastating…Their baby girl had not made it through the night. God had called her home. In a touching statement made by Hope, she writes, “your heart is whole now…your wings were ready, our hearts were not.”

This fundraiser is set up to allow Steve, Hope and their 3 year old, Angelina the time they will need to grieve the loss of their 2nd child. During the past 5 months, they have had many financial burdens, including but not limited to, medical expenses and traveling to and from San Francisco, not to mention time off to care for their beautiful daughter. Due to the nature of Steve’s employment, he is not eligible for state disability so the time he needs off of work will cripple their family. Please consider donating anything you can. If you are unable to donate, please share this page so this grieving family doesn’t have to worry about their finances during this heart wrenching time.