Love for Malachi

**For those of you new to our journey, I've added photos from when Malachi was younger as well as more recent photos. Read below for more information regarding what's next for Malachi! Thank you for being here!**

Then (2018):

Now (2024 - 2025):

Our Journey:

Our youngest son, Malachi, was born on May 8, 2018 with Heterotaxy Syndrome. It affects 1 in 10,000 people worldwide. Heterotaxy involves having some or all of your internal organs to be abnormally arranged or even missing. Most people with Heterotaxy also have congenital heart defects that need surgical repair.

This is the case with Malachi. At birth he was transferred to the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit and stayed for 106 days before being able to come home for the first time. In November 2018, he had open heart surgery at 6 months old and stayed in the hospital for 2 months.

His heart will never be normal but to help it function better he will need various procedures and open heart surgeries as he grows. Over time and with the help of his medical team and surgery he is expected to live a relatively normal life. Since he has already overcome so much and has so much more facing him in life, he’s our ‘heart warrior’. He truly is a miracle and we thank God for entrusting us as his parents.

He has been doing really well for a few years but now it is time for his next open heart surgery which is currently scheduled for January 29, 2025. He and I (Elise) will be traveling from California to the east coast for this surgery. We sought out a second opinion at a hospital that specializes in complex hearts and feel like this is the best option for him at this time. With that said, we are expected to be there for at least a month for pre-op testing, the surgery itself, recovery, and staying local after he's discharged until he's medically cleared to fly home.

I will be taking a leave of absence from work to care for him as long as needed. As some of you know, Brad recently lost his full time job and soon our health insurance. He has found 2 temporary part time jobs but they offer no benefits. Because of this we will now likely be paying a larger amount for our insurance premiums as well as medical bills for surgery.

Brad, Micah (age 12), and Molly (age 9) will remain in California while we're away. As you can imagine it will be difficult for the whole family to be separated for a period of time under stressful circumstances.

Our parents all live in South Carolina but have offered to help with the kids in California while Brad also works from home.

We appreciate your prayers for Malachi and our whole family. Some of you have been with us on this journey from the very beginning. We are so grateful to have friends and family who love us as you do. Thank you.