Baby Jack's Journey - Final Expenses

This campaign is set up to help Cayley and Alex (Edward Alexander) Braig cover some of the expenses incurred during their late son's five months of hospitalization and treatment, and to help them with funeral and burial expenses.  Dan Henderson Jr., campaign organizer, is Jackson's godfather and a close lifelong friend of Jackson's dad Alex. Their Story: Cayley and Alex were married June 16, 2018. Their son Jackson Edward was born the following May 9, 2019. Jack was born with Pierre-Robin Sequence (which gave him a cleft palate, recessed small jaw and a critical airway which affected his breathing) and congenital heart anomalies that required his transfer to Texas Children's Hospital in Houston. He was flown there by jet, and little Jackson underwent open heart surgery at four weeks of age to repair his pulmonary veins. He was diagnosed with Pulmonary Vein Stenosis, a rare condition in babies which sadly often tends to recur after treatment. It was later discovered that Jack had an underlying extremely rare genetic disorder known as Diamond Blackfan Anemia; it was this disorder that had caused Jack's heart anomalies, his Pulmonary Vein Stenosis, and the Pierre-Robin Sequence.

Jack was at TCH in Houston for almost five months, during which he received a multitude of tests, procedures, treatments, and specialty consults. Through it all,  Cayley and Alex were there in Houston with him.  Cayley was on break from nursing school for the summer, but Alex had to take an unpaid leave from work to be there to support her and Jack. Expenses mounted; housing rental with utilities, gas and other travel, daily hospital parking fees, etc... all the while having to cover their normal mortgage and bills from Waco. They quickly depleted their savings and began using credit cards much more than they would normally allow themselves to do. As Jack grew, there were items that he needed for his hospital stay that were recommended but not provided by the hospital, such as clothes that could be worn without interfering with the many wires and lines attached to Jack's body.

All the while, Cayley and Alex firmly believed they would be bringing Jackson home eventually. On the morning of October 7, Jack had been scheduled to be moved out of ICU to a regular floor room. This was a last step towards discharge! Sadly and unexpectedly, Jack's heart gave out in the early hours of that morning.  Despite the efforts of his entire medical team, they were unable to bring him back. Mom and Dad held him as they disconnected the ECMO machine and let him go peacefully. Cayley and Alex are struggling with the reality of losing their beloved son without ever being able to bring him home. Unfortunately, they are also struggling with the weight of the enormous financial drain of the past five months. They are staring at even more thousands of dollars for funeral and burial. People have been reaching out and asking how they can help Cayley and Alex. We are setting up this account to enable people to contribute towards funeral and burial costs, any final medical bills unpaid by insurance, and the personal expenses incurred over Jack's five-month hospitalization.  Cayley and Alex are truly  grateful for the love and support they have already received from so many.