A young mother of a baby girl battling a severe heart condition was surprised with a heartwarming gift from Secret Santa.
Sara’s daughter, Sierra, was born nine months ago with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS) and is in need of a heart transplant, East Idaho News reported.
HLHS is a birth defect that occurs when the left side of the infant’s heart does not form correctly, affecting blood flow to the vital organ, according to the CDC.
Furthermore, 2-3 months after she was born, Sierra’s heart stopped, and she had to be placed on a “Berlin Heart” machine in order to survive until she receives a transplant. The machine helps pump blood around her body to keep the organs until the heart recovers or a transplant is possible.
Over the past nine months, Sara and her husband, Kelton, have traveled between their apartment in Rexburg, Idaho, and Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah, where Sierra is being treated.
The family spends most of the time at the hospital. Sarah has even taken up a job in Utah to help support the family while being closer to Sierra at the hospital.
Back in Idaho, a local Secret Santa heard Sara and Kelton’s story and decided to bless the family with a $10,000 check to ease some of the financial costs the family has recently had to take on.
Upon receiving the gift while at work in Utah, Sara was overcome with emotion and was at a loss for words. She then thanked the Secret Santa and the East Idaho News team, who presented the donation on behalf of the generous donor.
This Christmas season, the anonymous Secret Santa is giving away $1 million to families in need within eastern Idaho and has a team from East Idaho News present the gifts on their behalf.
Some of the gifts that Secret Santa has blessed individuals with this year include giving a $20,000 check to a school secretary facing serious health challenges and paying for a student’s spring semester tuition and living expenses who is recovering after nearly drowning to death while swimming.
You can follow Ethan Letkeman on Twitter at @EthanLetkeman.
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