Makenzie was born in June of 2013 after what appeared to be a mostly normal pregnancy. Unfortunately, after birth she was struggling to breathe. Doctors acted quickly, placing her on a ventilator and soon discovered her left ventricle was not fully developed. They immediately set up transportation to Riley Children's Hospital for open heart surgery. Once at Riley doctors discovered she was born with Hypoplastic left heart syndrome.

This diagnosis would lead to a series of 3 surgeries. Her first open heart surgery was at 7 days old, her second at 6 months, and her third completed at 2 years old. The first surgery resulted in 32 days of touch and go while she had tubes and wires coming out of her newborn belly, arms, legs and chest. Her chest was kept open that first night in case emergency actions needed to be taken. With her second, Makenzie was an absolute champion and out of the hospital in only 5 days! Unfortunately, the third was supposed to be the easiest of the three but was not for Makenzie. Surgery itself went great, but a few hours after surgery Makenzie began having seizures; one lasting 30 minutes. After trying medication nothing could stop it but time. The next day our once spunky 2-year-old Makenzie couldn't talk, walk, sit up or drink. MRI imaging determined she had a stroke. Makenzie went through months of physical therapy and still suffers today from damage of the stroke.

Following the stroke, she was put on blood thinners and endured daily blood draws for months. It took years for this toddler to gain back mobility and just be able to jump and play and try to be like her peers. The fear of her getting sick again kept us all held up in our home for years, afraid to let in friends and family and allow her to have a “normal” childhood. Out of fear we isolated ourselves. Between every surgery Makenzie had several heart catheters (roughly 50), with doctors constantly watching and checking the pressure in her heart.

Unfavorably there are sometimes comorbidities with her illness, at the age of 8 she was additionally diagnosed with protein losing enteropathy; a condition which causes her body to reject healthy proteins. Flare ups lead her to become very lethargic, swollen, vomit and have extreme diarrhea. With her body losing fluids it dehydrates and throws off her system. Due to this she has received well over 100 albumin infusions and been hospitalized countless times, being escorted by ambulance several times to Riley. As she has grown, more conditions have compiled. At the age of 10 she was diagnosed with early signs of osteoporosis. She fell fracturing her elbow and two days later she tripped fracturing her wrist. The medication to treat her protein losing enteropathy (budesonide) is the cause of her loss of bone density. This medication has caused several other issues including moon face, hair loss, extreme bruising, bone density loss, and becoming very emotional. Due to this she stopped growing at the age of 10.

Almost one year after the additional osteoporosis diagnosis, Makenzie started bleeding internally with no explanation of where the blood was coming from. She received several blood units and underwent multiple tests. Unfortunately, they all came back inconclusive. In June of 2025 Makenzie rapidly became so swollen she couldn't wear shoes. Several tests were completed and it was finally determined she had varices. Upon this discovery she received 8 units of blood and had 3 surgeries in 3 days, with 13 days of not being able to eat or drink. Doctors started her on octreotide through IV which thankfully stopped the bleeding. This new medication can only be admitted either through IV or injections. Once she was released to go home, she received 2 injections twice a day. After a few months she was able to decrease to a monthly injection.

With the most recent diagnosis of varices the doctors decided it was time for a heart transplant. The only way to fix the varices and the protein losing enteropathy is with a new heart. As of February 2025, Makenzie was approved and listed at the top of the list for a new heart. The 21st of August at 11pm the call came in. Makenzie is getting her new heart!

All of this is only a fraction of what this brave, now teenage girl has endured, it will never encapsulate, the hours, minutes, and seconds of fear and uncertainty about tomorrow, and if it will come. We choose to live for today and worry about tomorrow, tomorrow. When Makenzie has good days she loves to go shopping, do her nails, and spend time with her family and friends like any other teenage girl. With this condition we made the decision that my husband would be our sole provider so I could be her sole caretaker. He has worked so hard and missed being with us during surgeries, hospital stays and many other events due to trying to continue to provide for us through these times. We hope to be able to raise enough money to be able to cover all our expenses for the minimum three-month stay in Indianapolis. Our family is stronger when we are together and we appreciate any donation big or small to help us get through this life saving and transformational surgery. Lastly prayers are powerful and are one of the best things that can be given, so we ask you to keep our family in your prayers leading up to, during, and after the procedure.