HANIEL CAMEROON

Little Haniel was born in Cameroon, a small country in Central Africa. Shortly after birth, his parents noticed he had blueish lips and fingers – especially when he cried – and knew something wasn’t right. The baby was diagnosed with ventricular septal defect, a hole between his heart’s lower chambers, and his body was not getting enough oxygen. Unfortunately, specialized pediatric care was not available in his very rural town or even larger cities nearby.

Haniel’s mother heard about HeartGift and reached out. After the necessary paperwork was filled out and extensive medical examinations and tests were complete, her son was accepted to come to the

United States to have his heart repaired. Despite three days of long travel, several flight cancellations and lost bags, Haniel and his father were all smiles upon arrival at San Antonio International Airport. Unfortunately, his surgery was postponed temporarily when he began to run a fever. Several weeks later, Haniel’s tiny heart was repaired at University Health in San Antonio by a group of dedicated, talented surgeons and medical professionals who volunteered their time and skills.

Haniel and his newly repaired heart returned home where he continues to steadily gain weight and grow like an active toddler walking, running, babbling, and laughing.

Dasha Bolivia

During her first few months of life, Dasha’s parents noticed she had difficulty breathing and was not gaining weight. She would also tire easily during feedings making it hard to gain weight. Doctors detected a heart murmur and diagnosed her with an atrial septal defect, or hole between the upper chambers of the heart. Unfortunately, local doctors in her rural area were not trained in the specialized cardiac care needed.

A few months later, Dasha and her family traveled many hours from their rural village to the larger city of Santa

Cruz where she was able to receive life-saving heart surgery during a HeartGift medical mission trip. During their 10-day trip to Bolivia, the medical team provided procedures for a total of 24 children and gave Dasha and her family hope.

Today, Dasha is growing big and strong, and meeting age-appropriate milestones thanks to her life-saving heart surgery!