 Erikson’s Story
I share a story similar to many of our CHD families, resulting in the birth of the “Hearts of Harvest” fundraiser. The first Wine Tasting Dinner and Charity Fundraiser was held in Tracy, CA 2001.
Erikson Ward Brown (my son who is now 15) lives with a rare heart defect called Left Ventricular Aneurysm. Nine weeks early at birth, chances were slim that he would live through the catheter procedure that he had on his third day of life. Doctors were puzzled in December of 1994, because after a world-wide networking search, Erikson’s defect had never been seen before. A new heart was his best chance for survival. In January of 1995, a heart from Atlanta Georgia became available. At just over 3 lbs., Erikson was too small to do the heart transplant, so his team of doctors at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital voted not to do the heart transplant on Erikson. I often wonder today what baby may have survived because of receiving this donor heart from Atlanta.
Our family, (with siblings Robb & Haley, ages 5 and 2) temporarily moved to Palo Alto. My husband (Robert) and I waited for 77 days praying that the heart that Erikson was born with, would start working. The day we had him baptized at bedside was his lowest and highest point. Through the power of love and faith in God, Miracles do happen! He came home at the age of 3 months weighing just 5 lbs. At two years old Erikson went from being on (7) heart medications four times a day, to none.
In the Spring of 2000, I connected with Pam McCain, a Tracy Support Group Leader for heart kids. I suggested that together we plan an event to raise money to assist families with food, housing, transportation, childcare, and other unforeseen living expenses when their child is in the hospital. Pam and another Tracy mother, Bonnie Smith (both with CHD children), teamed up in sharing my enthusiasm to make “Hearts of Harvest 2001” a reality. Taking the edge off the financial burden from families going through a medical crisis with a child was and still is my heartfelt desire.
My passion for this cause led me to form a non-profit organization called Hearts of Harvest Foundation, in January of 2003. Our motto: “The Giving of One Heart to Another,” is in honor of the family who lived in Atlanta, Georgia. The Mother and Father I never met who unselfishly offered their baby’s heart to my son 15 years ago. Emotionally, families ride a roller coaster and facing unforeseen financial burdens can make it even harder to cope. HOHF long-range mission is to partner with other non-profits who can help with assisting families with children that are faced with any life-threatening medical condition. HOHF operating principles continue to support pediatric research for children with heart disease and offers assistance to families with children who have a heart condition.
Our next Hearts of Harvest will be held on Saturday, September 11th, 2010. It is an outdoor event held in a vineyard setting featuring fun-filled action and auctions. California wineries serve their favorite labels to guests and a gourmet dinner will satisfy guests’ appetites. It is always my hope to be able to touch more hearts that will want to contribute to this strong, but small non-profit, so collectively the Giving of one heart to Another can truly make a difference to a family who is hurting. What makes us unique is that all of our efforts continue to be 100% volunteer, so that we can produce a fruitful harvest that directly benefits the community of Tracy, our surrounding communities and beyond!
Becki B. Brown ~ Mother of Erikson
Founder/Executive Director of HOHF
 Samantha’s Story
Samantha was born at 9:30PM in Tracy, California on Saturday March 1, 2007 to Steve and Pam McCain. Pregnancy, labor and delivery were all fairly easy and uneventful for Samantha and I. Samantha received Apgar scores of 9 and 10 from the nurses in the delivery room. Samantha was our second child and we figured everything was easier because of that.
On Sunday was our first sign that all was not OK. Samantha became very sleepy and really didn't wake up for anything. Late afternoon, nurse Margaret came to check on us. She asked if she could take Samantha to the nursing station while I got ready to go. My husband and son where coming to take Samantha and I home from the hospital. I noticed that the nurse watched Samantha breathe and listened to her heart. At the time I thought nothing of it but I know now that nurse Margaret had picked up on Samantha's rapid breathing.
To our shock, the staff was still working on Samantha when my husband and son arrived. They were checking her vitals and trying to make her comfortable. She was now under some sort of oxygen tent and seemed to be laboring to breathe. When the doctor assessed our baby girl, they called Children's Hospital Oakland for a transport. He told us that she had a heart murmur that wasn't present earlier and she needed to go to Children's Oakland to have a cardiologist take a look at her.
I just kept thinking she is really OK, they are just being extra safe. After several x-rays, IV lines and even a difficult intubation, our sweet baby girl and the transport team were ready to go. This process was not at all quick. It took a total of 3 hours to prepare Samantha for transport. It was after midnight when we arrived at Children's Hospital Oakland and we were still hoping for an easy answer to what was happening to us – to Samantha. We were in the waiting room only a few minutes when the cardiologist came to get us. When he asked us to follow him to a meeting room, we knew it wasn't good.
He told us Samantha, our baby girl, had a very serious congenital heart defect – Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. The cardiologist, Dr. Saba, let us know that we were going to have to choose one of three options for Samantha's medical treatment. The first option was called 'compassionate care'. If we chose this option, the hospital would give Samantha medications to keep her comfortable and send her home. She would live a few more days or maybe a few weeks. This was not an option we could live with. The second treatment option was a heart transplant. This would mean waiting for an infant heart to become available. Many babies die waiting. The third and final option was a series of palliative surgeries called Norwood. This was a set of three-staged surgeries that would change the way Samantha's heart worked. Dr. Saba told us that whatever we decided would be best for our family but we needed to make a decision soon.
It only took us a few short moments of fear, tears and some indescribable inner strength to choose the three-stage surgery option for our baby girl. This was a proactive way to handle this problem that we didn't fully understand. The rest I can say is history. Samantha is now a teenager and doing well. Altogether she has only spent about 35 days in the hospital – which is a remarkable blessing to her and our family. We thank God for the gifted medical staff that has cared for our daughter and for the opportunity we have to share her story with you and others.
Jacob’s Story
Coming Soon . . .
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