Casey’s Cause is one that is truly warming hearts across South Africa. The brave little baby has people standing in his corner, hoping for his recovery.
Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) is when the heart doesn’t develop properly while in the womb. The Hudson Initiative is working to educate expecting mothers to see the signs of CHD.
CHD is one of the most common types of birth defects. Symptoms include abnormal heart rhythms, blue-tinted skin, shortness of breath, failure to feed or develop normally, and swollen body tissue or organs.
“1 in 100 babies is diagnosed with heart defects in South Africa. Some babies go undiagnosed until it’s too late because mothers don’t know about CHDs or what they can do to prepare for them.”
Andrea started the Hudson Initiative after losing her own son to CHD. She is raising awareness and funds through her NPO for CHD research and lifesaving pulse ox machines. The hope is to change the healthcare system in South Africa to ensure all babies are tested before going home.
One of the babies being supported by the initiative is baby Casey who is only 1-month old and has already faced more in his little life than most. His brave story has warmed the hearts of strangers and together, they have started to support little Casey’s medical expenses from his first open-heart surgery.
“Casey was diagnosed with a Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) at 12 days old – severe aortic stenosis as well as coarctation of the aorta.”
“Casey’s CHD was also complex and he just recently had surgery to address it and is safely home with his parents but, as most of us have experienced ourselves, this has left this little family with medical bills to the tune of R130K.”
A fund was started on the Sanlam crowdfunding platform “ADDaBIT” to help support Casey’s Cause. Already people have helped collect nearly R20k. People are moved by his brave little face and his fighting spirit.
Casey, you may be too young to read or comprehend the meaning of words but just know that we are all behind you little man, you have got this!
Brett Stevens
by 