Have you ever heard of Atrial Septal Defect (ASD)? Apparently, it’s a congenital heart defect.
If you have a defect in your interatrial septum, the tissue that divides the right side of your heart from the left side, your blood can get confused. And if that happens, you end up with blood that goes where it shouldn’t. That’s bad.
In a normal heart, the left ventricle has to produce enough pressure to pump blood throughout the entire body, but the right ventricle has to produce only enough pressure to pump blood to the lungs.
In the case of a large defect, this pressure difference means that blood from the left atrium can flood and enlarge the right side of the heart and, if left untreated, can result in heart failure.
That’s ASD in a nutshell. And this is why I tell you.
Alexander is an 8-year-old Kenyan boy who has ASD. He is in the third grade and is the youngest child in a family of five. Because his heart has been pumping deoxygenated blood to his growing body for his entire life, Alexander is smaller than most children his age.
In August 2008, during an evaluation at the child development center, a pediatrician noticed that Alexander has a heart murmur. Follow-up tests in Nairobi identified the birth defect and recommended a cardiac catheterization procedure and open heart surgery.
But Alexander’s parents are peasant farmers, and his mother sells fruit at the market to earn extra income. They survive on $13.70 per month.
$13.70 a month is barely adequate to meet the family’s basic needs, let alone pay for open heart surgery.
At this point, heart failure is a real possibility for Alexander. However, studies have shown that patients with a surgically repaired ASD have an excellent prognosis, particularly when the operation is done before the age of 25.
But Alexander’s family can’t afford the operation. It costs $8,303.
Alexander has been waiting to receive the surgery for several months now, since early December, but he can’t wait any longer. His condition has recently worsened – which made me think of something Amanda suggested back in February.
“I am just kicking around a few ideas here. What if Compassion had a “Spotlight of the Week” – or “Spotlight of the Month?” It could be either a child (medical need?), family, or small community need. It could even be in the area of the global financial crisis, disaster relief, Child Survival Program, or some other facet of Compassion. For example, one week you could highlight the (global food crisis) need of a community in Uganda to have goats or seeds for crops (or both). After the donations have been given, you could easily follow up with a story in the blog to share the results of the giving.”
So, Alexander has a need. And our objective is to give him a normal heart. Can we do this for him?
Make a donation to help pay for Alexander’s surgery. (Update: May 21, 2009 – You did it! And more. You contributed around $10,000. I expect to have the exact amount tomorrow.)
Thank you for loving this child.
As I receive updates on how Alexander is doing, I will share them with you. I can’t promise you updates with any degree of regularity though. I can just promise that there will be a follow-up.
@Cheryl J – What did you have in mind? Anything specific?
Everyone could love on him here, and we can have our country office “share the love” with him.
@Judith Tremblay – The $8,303 included hospital and home post-op checkups.
Everything above $8,303 will be added to the Medical Assistance Fund and used to meet the critical medical needs of other Compassion kids – assuming each need is below $5,000.
@Chris Giovagnoni – Are you suggesting “Notes” we could right to forward to him? I hope you are!
*correction write
@Caitlin – Yes. There are two ways to do it.
I was initially thinking people could write encouraging notes as blog comments, but it’s probably best to submit your “notes” of encouragement through the contact us form.
I will collect them and will have them delivered to Alex.
Chris – is your job just to sit and monitor the blog comments all day?!? I’m amazed at your quick responses all over the place! You rock!
@Kristen – That’s what it has become the past two days.
But rest assured, I’m getting other stuff done too.
@Chris Giovagnoni – yay!
Amazing!!!!!! I hesitated on donating and missed the blessing
I guess I’ll have to be quicker on the draw next time.
I would like to see comments, but also a card or better yet, a stuffed animal. Something tangible. I guess comments are tangible, but I think you know what I mean. Little kids undergoing surgery, even if it is long-awaited, go through a lot of stress. I would like to see him have something that would put a big smile on his face. @Chris Giovagnoni -
@Kristen –
Kristen,
At the end of the day we cannot know every little thing, but that is why I send family gifts so I know my sponsor kids are “getting” something for sure. They usually send a picture of what they received but I am steadily realizing the profound wealth of the intangible. I think I value my sponsored child’s prayers the most b/c I believe they are authentic as are mine. I do not care about financial integrity in terms of why I chose to get invovled with Compassion, I simply saw them as trying to help and throw TRUTH through God’s Word and practical acts of kindness in the general direction of those who need help. I like how I see Jesus’ and God’s name everywhere with Compassion and bible verses. It is important to model Godly practices being about God but I like Compassion b/c I agree with the bible and Compassion has a lot of bible verses which I like. There is more to it than that, but they are a tunnel for me so to speak to allow me to go to places and help people that often desperately need it when otherwise I probably would not be able to without Compassion. I do not think I would be involved with Compassion if they did not have the opportunity to visit, which is AMAZING b/c then you don’t have to listen to your family and friends’ suppositions about Compassion and helping others you can TELL them HOW IT IS
…at least on your short trip.
I Peter 5:7 “Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for YOU!!!”
Mike
Blessed be the Lord God Almighty who supplied this young boy’s need!
Will any excess be put into the Medical Assistance Fund or roll over to the next “Spotlight of the Month” need?
This is not the final number because we’re actually still receiving donations, but so far the total is $11,603.
@Kelly Creason – Everything above the $8,303 needed is placed in to the Medical Assistance Fund.
@Cheryl J – I received the encouraging note that you sent to Alexander via email. Thank you.
We certainly wouldn’t be able to send a gift, like a stuffed animal, to Alexander because that runs into the same issues that prevent sponsors from sending gifts like that to their own sponsored children.
If there is enough interest in sending cards and small items, such as what can be included in a letter sent to a sponsored child, I can look into how we might handle that in this situation. Let me know.
@Chris Giovagnoni – It would be nice to be bale to send a handwritten card, if that is possible.
I came over here today to do my part for little Alexander and almost fell off my chair when I saw that the amount needed has been raised! That’s awesome!
I hope that Compassion will offer other opportunities to help individuals, as the need arises — and that God will guide us to those who would be best served in this way.
In my community, we do this kind of thing all the time. Fundraisers for families whose children are ill, whose homes have been destroyed by natural disasters, who have been in accidents. I like the idea of doing it through Compassion, as well, because that’s what truly makes us a global community. When someone has a need, you’re there for them. Doesn’t matter how many miles separate you. That’s the kind of world I want to live in.
@Lisa Miles – I agree Lisa, however as you probably know better than me we do live in a world where we help each other, but many are not helped.
It’s easy to help. As we’ve seen with Alexander!
@Karen – Karen,
you can still donate!!!!!!!!
@Lisa Miles – I agree that having a name to put to the donation is more substantial for me. This is in fact what we are all doing through child sponsorship. Instead of just giving a certain amount every month to a charity, we are getting the help of a charity to reach a specific child. And developing a relationship that means much more than just financial support.
I love the fact that we have been given the opportunity to donate to a specific need. I would rather be able to pray, “Lord help Alexander’s heart surgery to go well” than just “Lord help all those who are sick.”
To Chris and all who were behind the scenes on making this happen, “Thank you.”
Hello everyone.
Here is the final and official amount donated by you to Alexander’s heart surgery . . .
drum roll please . . .
$10,084.94
Everything above the $8,303 needed for Alexander’s surgery will be used to meet the critical medical needs of other children through our Medical Assistance Fund.
The number is lower than I originally mentioned (@Chris Giovagnoni) because I misunderstood the tracking report I read. I apologize for that and for the delay in getting this final number to you.
Again, thank you for everything you did here and for what you do everyday on behalf of the children you support and love.
Alexander will undergo a diagnostic cardiac catheterization on June 9.
What’s diagnostic cardiac catheterization? Glad you asked.
Why is diagnostic cardiac catheterization done? Again, glad you asked.
Quotes are from Richard A. Lange, MD; L. David Hillis, MD, from the Department of Internal Medicine (Cardiovascular Division), the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas.
Yay! I’m SO thankful that the goal was met! Yay! I pray that the cath procedure will go well and that he will recover quickly.
Thank you Compassion staff. I wish you were located in the bay area so I can come work for you. =)
-Mary
The results of the diagnostic cardiac catheterization require a more complex heart and lung machine to support Alexander during his surgery. That machine isn’t available in Kenya, so the surgery will have to be performed in India – at the MIOT Cardiac Centre.
The exact date of the surgery hasn’t been set yet. The Compassion Kenya office is discussing this with the hospital and is also processing all the necessary travel documents for Alexander.
Thank for keeping us up to date!
If I were a betting person, I’d lay odds that, with the need for the travel and superduper equipment, the full amount of money that was raised from this blog may turn out to have been what is needed. As in, God would know how much it was really going to take. If so, I hope it’s all still available to Alexander!
@Vicki Small – Ya know, you just might be right. I think God likes to surprise us like that–to give us little reminders that a) he provides for what we need, b) he often gives us more than we think we need, and c) he knows what’s coming!
http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/ChildrensHeart/index/
Samaritans purse has a ministry giving needy kids heart surgery. They have done a wonderful 30 minute program on the process. The show is hosted by Billy Graham’s granddaughter, the show is on the web sight listed above.
Is there any update on the pending surgery? Are funds still needed?
@T Clarke – I asked the field for an update on July 7. I have not heard back yet. I will post a comment update as soon as I get a reply. Thanks for keeping me focused.
I received this update from our Kenya office this morning:
amazing! (apparently my one word comment is too short, so this parenthesis comment should make it qualify)
YAY! To think that Alex’s life has been saved because of God’s provision through the Saints is … comforting!
Praise the Lord!
That’s wonderful news!
Is it too early for an update? I can’t wait to hear that Alexander is back home and recovering!
Here is an update on Alexander from the Compassion Kenya office.
Praise God that he is doing well and back home again! It’s great that he has school holidays now to play and regain strength before starting school again. Thanks for keeping us in the loop Chris!
We just received our final update from the Kenya office about Alexander.
It says:
It also contains a few comments from Alexander’s mother.
Praise God that, through the raising of funds for Alexander’s surgery, the Lord has been liften up; He has received the honor and glory due Him!
Not to mention that Alexander is able, finally, to be a young boy, again!
What a beautiful example of what happens when the Body of Christ comes together to be the hands and feet, reaching out in compassion to meet the needs of our brothers and sisters. Praise God that He equips His church to meet the needs of His people all to His greater glory. Praise God for the wisdom and skill of workers and doctors who recognized a need, worked to meet it, and then treated this child and his family, bringing healing and wholeness and health where it had not been before. How beautiful is the Body of Christ!
Bless his little heart.
I’m so happy he had a successful surgical procedure. It’s amazing how much the little tiny bodies can take, yet they are the strongest and most pure.
My best wished to Alexander and his family.
Regards,
Ceclia
I found this story and thought “YES! That is similar to what my daughter had”. I am so thankful that Alexander received his needed surgery. If he is anything like my daughter, he was up and going in no time at all. <3
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