Team Live Like Noah at the finish line with Interventional Pediatric Cardiologists, Dr. Levi and Dr. Sinha of UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital.
We want to say a BIG THANK YOU to everyone that supported our HIKE FOR NOAH campaign throughout heart month! Because you shared our story, made a donation, and bought gear from our shop, we raised an astounding $20,678 for the Pediatric Lymphatic Intervention Program at UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital! 100% of the proceeds will benefit this program’s training needs.
A SPECIAL THANKS to our fundraising team of hikers & cyclist for all your hustle…Keith Michaelis, Briana Evigan, Terra Chez, Christa Duggan, Hattie Eick, Araceli Hager, Mary Bordokas, Eric El-Tobgy, BJ Calomay, Lauren Elizabeth Sims, Beau Garrett, Emily Colombier, Jennifer Levi, Gina Candari, Damion Donigian, Garth Letts, Sami Jenks, and Susie Furler who cycled 22 miles! We could not have done any of this without you!!
Our hike was something amazing. We experienced Noah’s grace, strength and determination throughout our 16 mile hike through the Santa Monica Mountains, which challenged us in ways we didn’t expect. Each of us walked away with a deeper appreciation for life, nature, each other, and giving to something bigger than ourselves. It was about EXPLORING MORE and living it to the fullest; at times going beyond our comfort zones. It was about ADVENTURING ON when we had to improvise after the heavily rushing stream from all our rain had overtaken the trail. Noah pushed us to never give up even when it hurt. But all our soreness will heal and that's nothing compared to what she and so many other kids with congenital heart disease go through. In the end we made it and every word of encouragement from all of you along the way kept us energized. Thank you.
When Noah, our daughter, showed us her first plastic bronchitis (PB) cast, we were shocked and worried. But we were even more shocked and worried to learn there was only one place in the U.S. to get the help she needed, 3000 miles away at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where they had a dedicated lymphatic intervention program to treat this disorder. It was discovered that Noah’s lymphatic issue was a result of her last open heart surgery, the Fontan Procedure, to correct her Congenital Heart Defects (CHD). Noah was patient 76 as the program was just three years old. She was just their third patient having both PB and PLE (Protein Losing Enteropathy) along with her CHD complications. Noah was scared going to a new team, which didn't know her and her complicated condition as her UCLA cardiac team did.
The CHOP team was amazing and took care of Noah very well. The lymphatic leaks, which was a result of her last open heart surgery to correct her CHDs, was fixed by the procedure but the damage was still too much for Noah's body and she didn't leave the hospital. Noah passed on January 3rd, 2017 at the age of 13.
But from her passing, a pediatric lymphatic intervention program at UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital has been created in Noah's memory. This is the only program of this kind on the West Coast. Live Like Noah Foundation is fundraising to raise $25,000, during Heart month, to support this life saving program, one that will benefit so many kids like Noah.
100% of funds raised will help with training. This includes flying doctors and staff to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, to receive hands-on training by the leading doctors who started the lymphatic intervention procedure and who last treated Noah's lymphatic condition.
Our campaign will culminate with a 16-mile hike on Saturday, Feb. 23rd through the Santa Monica Mountains with our enlisted team of hikers to honor Noah and all CHD kids like her who are unable to hike because of their heart condition.
We hope you will join us in supporting this campaign.
This campaign is now closed.
If you would like to make a contribution to support or ongoing effort to help UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital, please donate below.