Lil' Luchi Fund

From the moment Little Luchi came into being, he was nothing short of a miracle. Luciano Matthew Shaw was born three months premature on July 30th 2017, weighing 1lb and 5.5oz. That’s right, just under one and a half pounds! For the last five months, Luchi has been under NICU care in Cleveland, Ohio where parents Kara and Matt reside.

However, to truly understand how much of a miracle this baby boy is, we have to back up a few years to hear Kara’s story as well. By the time Kara Frair was 17 years old, she was already a three time cancer survivor. In her fight against Hodgkin’s disease, she had several rounds of intense chemotherapy treatments and stem cell transplants. She came through on the other side as one of the toughest, funniest, uplifting human beings you will ever meet in your life. Even though you would never know it from her cheery disposition, every day she lives with the health impacts of her body going through so much at such a young age. For the last 12 years, Kara was told that she was unable to conceive a child due to being in premature ovarian failure from cancer treatments. As you can imagine, when Luciano was announced to the world, it was the shock of a lifetime!

After the excitement and tears and hugs ensued, Kara and Matt quickly realized this would be a rollercoaster ride.  Around the 24 week period of her pregnancy, Kara was admitted to the hospital with severe pre-eclampsia. She spent seven nights being closely monitored before it was determined that continuing to carry her baby would put her own life at risk. She underwent a C-section and delivered Luciano with Matt by her side every step of the way. 
Beautiful baby boy Luciano made his debut to the world, but was not nearly out of the woods. An hour after being born he suffered two rib fractures and needed to be resuscitated. Never losing faith and hope, Kara and Matt patiently waited to hold their baby for the first time.  After three emotional weeks, they would finally be able to touch, hold, love and kiss their son.
As time went on, Luciano continued to defy the odds and prove to be a fighter. In the first few months of his life he experienced accidental extubations with his breathing tube and underwent multiple blood transfusions, all while having three lines hooked up to him in three limbs. He fought back against kidney failure, chronic lung disease and pneumonia. He has withstood endless x-rays, echocardiograms, ultrasounds and medications. While he continues to make progress, set records and swoon the nurses with his big eyes, we are constantly reminded that every day is blessing. Luciano has been in the hospital since he was born this past July, and we are still not sure when he will be able to come home. Kara and Matt have been making the trip to and from the NICU every day for the last five months with their devotion never wavering.
There are several things that we are trying to achieve with this fundraiser. We are hoping to help offset some of the unexpected costs and expenses they have built up over the last five months. We are hoping to offset some of the lost wages from Kara taking time off work to be with her son in the hospital. We are hoping to raise money for future medical costs and extra needs Luchi will have when he finally makes his journey home. Lastly, we are hoping that Kara and Matt can use this to spend time together doing something special this holiday season. If you can find it within your heart to help out this beautiful family, we would be forever grateful.