Support Kami McNamara’s Journey to Health and Stability

The sweet baby girl in the picture is Kami and I am her Aunt, Ginger McNamara. Kami was delivered prematurely at 25 weeks. Shevi Poston, her mom, had pre-eclampsia with severe features. Shevi required more specialized care than available in Custer, South Dakota, where she was living and working. As a result, Kami was born in Rapid City in March of 2024, weighing only 1 pound, 13 ounces. The baby had many health issues at birth and was “life-flighted” from Rapid City to a high level NICU in Sioux Falls.

Kami was in serious respiratory distress and required the assistance of a ventilator to breathe as well as supplemental oxygen. There were numerous other medical concerns. Kami is now almost 11 months old, 21 inches tall, and weighs about 15 pounds, but she is still not breathing on her own. In late 2024, she had a tracheostomy and still requires aid of the ventilator and supplemental oxygen to breathe. She was moved from the NICU to a skilled nursing facility shortly after that procedure. Due to her medical issues, physicians believe she needs time to grow bigger and stronger before removing the trach tube will be possible. She will require a skilled nursing environment with around the clock observation and care for babies with her condition; bronchopulmonary dysplasia Grade 3. Physicians have no idea what her rate of growth will be and believes she could require this kind of care and therapy for many months.

Shevi has her own health issues including Type I Diabetes and Stage 3 Kidney Disease. She does not have health insurance. She has no friends or family in Sioux Falls. It is imperative that Kami and Shevi have a support system of family and friends around them. There is a pediatric care center in Gladewater, Texas, that will accept Kami as soon as she is weaned off two medications, which should be sometime very soon. Gladewater will put them within a 50 mile radius of most of their family and friends who all live in Texas.

Shevi needs help to relocate. She has very few possessions to travel with and her car is unreliable. At this time, she is staying at Ronald MacDonald House in Sioux Falls. She will need funds to get to Texas. She is unsure about transportation arrangements for Kami, but will not be able to find out the specifics until the transfer is officially put in place. The Texas medical team must travel to South Dakota to assess Kami’s medical needs to determine the mode of transportation for her.

When Shevi arrives she will need to secure housing and essentials to live. We are hoping that she would be able to spend at least three months getting everything situated before looking for employment. This would allow her to be at the care facility to help Kami transition to her new situation and to look for a good job with insurance. There are so many unknowns at this point. She has no idea what kind of medical bills she will be left with either. What we do know is that she has to be among friends and family who can carry some of the burden by lending a hand. First and foremost, please pray or continue to pray for this little family.