My name is Harris and I am 18 months old. My birthday is January 31, 2010. My favorite two people are my brother Owen and my sister Claire. When I was seven weeks old I was diagnosed with a rare liver disease called Biliary Atresia (visit www.baaware.org). I had a procedure called a Kasai Procedure in which they removed my gallbladder and bile duct and rerouted my intestines to form a bile duct.
The Kasai procedure has varied results from child to child. The only cure for Biliary Atresia is a Liver Transplant. Just after my first birthday my doctors decided I needed to be listed for a Liver Transplant. I have had many liver infections and problems with edema and swelling. As of the end of May 2011 I have spent at least 100 days in the hospital.
I receive all my care at a wonderful place called Egleston Children's Hosptial in Atlanta, GA. They take very good care of me and my doctor is amazing. The only problem is that Egleston is 250 miles (one way) from my house. This causes my family to have a lot of travel expenses not to mention my medical bills.
I have been on the transplant list since the end of March 2011 and am still waiting. I have been doing very well lately and even put on some weight (this is very hard for a liver kid)! The transplant will cause my family to have to relocate to Atlanta for 2-3 months potentially since I will have to have lots of follow up care for awhile. Also, I have to take anti-rejection medication for the rest of my life which can cost up to $5,000 per month even with insurance.
If you contribute to my Georgia Transplant Foundation Account my family will recieve a matching donation of up to $10,000. This means that I have one year to get as much money in my account as possible (until the end of June 2012). If we get $10,000 in my account, Georgia Transplant will also give $10,000 which equals $20,000! How often can you double your money?
This money will only be reimbursed to my family for travel and lodging (up to a certian amount) but mainly it will be available to pay for my medication post transplant.
Thank you so much for visiting my site!
Love,
Harris