Ulises Vega was born on 8/13/2018 at Adventist Health Hospital in Sonora, Ca. He was two weeks late, weighed 10lbs and his mother was so anxious to take her perfect baby boy home to his four sisters. Unfortunately, those hopes were very quickly dashed. Almost immediately after birth it became apparent that something was very seriously wrong. He was first whisked off to the NICU due to low oxygen levels. Two hours later they were able to determine that there was an urgent issue with his heart and he needed to be airlifted to a bigger, more equipped hospital. Ulises was finally diagnosed with a critical congenital heart defect (CCHD) called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS) which was missed on his 20 week anatomy scan. Essentially, the left side of his heart never developed in utero and he was and is now functioning with only half of a heart. If that wasn't enough, he also had a leaky tricuspid valve which allows his blood to flow backwards and means that the functioning half of his heart (which was already working overtime) had to work twice as hard to get oxygen to his body. Ulises suffered his first cardiac arrest at just one day old; had his first open heart surgery at two weeks old; his second would follow at three months. In his four short years of life he has spent 28 hours in surgery; had seven blood transfusions; been on bypass for more than six hours; been intubated five times; had four serious allergic reactions and is about to undergo his third open heart surgery. He has suffered numerous complications including a blood clot in his leg, numerous infections, he's been hooked to countless IVs, monitors, etc; and his family has been through more than most of us could even imagine. As Ulises spent his first six months of life at UCSF (hours away from his family home), his mother Veronica was unable to return to work. Her four daughters also had to live in the hospital and missed six months of school. They lost their house. Their belongings went into storage. Their childhood pets were rehomed. And when Uli was finally released to go home, they didn't know where home was anymore. They had to relocate to be closer to qualified medical care and found placement at a shelter in Livermore. They completely started their lives over with new schools, new friends and Veronica's new job as Ulises' around the clock care provider for meds, tube feedings, monitoring and countless appointments for cardiology, gastroenterology, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech, and the list goes on and on. Fortunately, as a single mother, she is compensated for his care when he's home. Unfortunately, when he's in the hospital, the family loses their income. Veronica & Ulises are currently at UCSF. Uli is in active heart failure and they are awaiting yet another open heart surgery. This time we want to be proactive in minimizing at least the financial loss that the family will endure over the next several months. His sisters are at home so there will also be a mealtrain sign up to provide them dinners. But we are asking for help now to cover rent, utilities, and the basic necessities that this family will not be able to afford without your help. If you feel led to contribute, any and everything helps and this family will be eternally grateful to avoid living through the same devastation twice. If you cannot contribute at this time, we ask you to please share. From the bottom of our hearts, THANK YOU!!!
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