Heart Strong NJ Golf Outing- meet the warrior!

Heart Strong Golf Outing!

On Friday, June 9th 2017, Hayden’s Heart + Madison Strong will join forces to host our 4th Annual Golf Outing at Preakness Valley Golf Course, appropriately titled ‘Heart Strong’.

Together we will honor Shea Oldenburger, a toddler from Washington Township, NJ, who is fighting a multitude of Congenital Heart Defects. (Read his story below)

At the event, we will have prizes for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place foursomes, as well as door prizes, raffles and contests throughout the event.

Breakfast, drinks and a luncheon following the tournament is included in the price.

Please see flyer or website for all event details and to register for this event! - space is limited! If you would like to sponsor this event, please email ady.dorsett@haydensheart.org 

Meet Shea

My husband and I were so excited to find out we were having our first baby. We went for my 20 week ultrasound and after lots of moving and readjusting, the ultrasound technician went to get the doctor. After a 30 minute wait, the doctor returned and informed us that our baby had a complex series of heart defects. We rushed to a pediatric cardiologist who confirmed the diagnosis.

The next day we went to Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital at Columbia NYP where we began our heart journey. Shea Noah was born on February 27, 2016 with hypoplastic right ventricle and tricuspid valve, aortic atresia, VSD, and interrupted IVC. He had his first open heart surgery when he was four days old and did so well in recovery that he came home after only 16 days in the NICU.

Shea was monitored very closely for the next 5 weeks, until he displayed lower oxygen levels and was eating less. Due to the quick intervention at Columbia NYP, it was determined that his aortic arch repair was clogged with scar tissue, reducing his aorta to the size of a pin hole and barely allowing blood to pass. He had a heart catheterization the day after his 2-month birthday, where the doctor inflated a balloon in his aorta to stretch it out and allow more blood to pass. This fix worked for 3 more months.

On Shea’s 5-month birthday he had his second open heart surgery. Although he recovered quickly, this surgery came with many complications. Shea’s vocal cord needed to be moved during surgery because of it’s proximity to the heart, resulting in vocal cord paralysis. He developed a blood clot from the central IV line that was inserted to administer medications. He got a Strep blood infection, and a Staph wound infection. All of these complications resolved themselves, and now Shea is completely recovered from this surgery!

Shea needs one more open heart surgery when he is around 4 years old. He is now thriving due to the incredible care from Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital at Columbia NYP. He loves to swing his baseball bat and play with his puppy. This journey hasn’t been easy, but we wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.