Waiting for Hope: One Family’s Journey on a Transplant List

February 27th, 2024 | News

Time is precious, especially when your child is on a transplant list. Yet one family is using the opportunity to spread awareness for Congenital Heart Defects (CHD) while staying in the comfort of the Ronald McDonald House. Watch more here.

DJ, now eighteen months old, was diagnosed with CHD in utero but didn’t show symptoms of heart failure until early November 2023. During a visit with his cardiologist, his family was devastated to learn he was in severe heart failure.

Hope, resilience, and renowned healthcare providers at American Family Children’s Hospital continue to ground the family while they wait. As natives of southern Wisconsin, they cannot bear to leave their son’s side while he remains at the hospital, relieved to have a respite at RMHC-Madison so they can stay close to DJ every step of the way.

DJ’s mother shared, “Having a place to rest your head, even for a night, means you can be in a more present spot for your child. Before I found out about RMHC I stayed by his side at the hospital for a month. I didn’t feel comfortable leaving for home, an hour and a half away. We began looking for apartments, but finding out about the Ronald McDonald House, right here, not even a block away, was a lifesaver.”

We are grateful to watch our mission provide comfort and respite to families for months and sometimes more than a year. Keeping families close has never been more rewarding.