Times Tribune – By Josh McAuliffe, 04/05/2014
Amanda and Jonathan Evans received no advance warning that anything was wrong with their baby girl, Vayda. But just after Mrs. Evans gave birth in late April 2012, doctors informed the Old Forge couple that Vayda suffered from a rare heart defect.“ It was devastating,” Mrs. Evans said.“ You don’t want to hear your baby has to go through heart surgery.” Fortunately, a lot of good things have happened since that terrible moment, and today Vayda is a happy, healthy, active little girl just weeks away from celebrating her second birthday. Recently, the American Heart Association chose Vayda to serve as the child chair for its annual Northeast PA Heart Walk. As usual, two walks will occur this spring. The first will take place Saturday, April 12, at Scranton’s Nay Aug Park. The second walk is set for Saturday, May 31, at Kirby Park in Kingston. Registration begins at 9 a.m., and the walk start s at 10 both days. The Heart Walk is AMA’s biggest fundraiser, with participants raising money to fight the country’s No. 1 and No. 4 killers, heart disease and strokes, respectively. The noncompetitive, pet-friendly walk also will include prizes and activities for participants, and walkers who raise a minimum of $100 will receive a Heart Walk T-shirt. Colleen Phillips, vice president of marketing, and Jill Houseknecht, marketing and community relations coordinator at Cross Valley Federal Credit Union, will serve as the event’s co-chairs.
Jonathan and Amanda Evans of Old Forge with their daughter, Vayda, the child chair of the American Heart Association’s 2014 Heart Walk. -Christopher Dolan / Staff Photographer
Vayda was chosen to serve as child chair after her family participated in last year’s walk. Mrs. Evans had a normal, stress-free pregnancy, but on the day after giving birth to Vayda she and her husband received the news about their daughter’s heart. “They told us she had a heart murmur and they were bringing a cardiologist to see her,” Mrs.Evans said. “We had no idea. We thought everything was good.” Doctors diagnosed the infant with Tetralogy of Fallot, a congenital heart defect that affects about five out of every 10,000 babies, according to the National Institutes of Health. It’s characterized by four defects — a large ventricular septal defect, pulmonary stenosis, right ventricular hypertrophy and an overriding aorta. On Sept. 10, 2012, Vayda underwent open-heart surgery at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. The five-hour procedure proved a success, and Vayda was back home several days later. Since then, she’s been fine. She has checkups with her cardiologist on a yearly basis, and she’s not expected to need any additional surgeries, at least for a long time, Mrs. Evans said.
On a recent afternoon at the family’s home, Vayda ran around with a big smile on her face. She thoroughly enjoyed having her picture taken (“More” she said after each one), and tossed a rubber ball to her pet labradoodle, Charlie. When she’s a little older, she’ll be able to play organized sports just like any other kid. The Evanses will have a number of family members and friends participating in the Heart Walk with them. They named their team Vayda’s Happy Heart. Vayda also will serve as child chair for the Central Susquehanna Valley Heart Walk in September at Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg. Mr. and Mrs. Evans have become passionate advocates for the cause of requiring pulse oximetry screening for all newborns in Pennsylvania. The simple, noninvasive test can detect critical congenital heart defects. The couple received plenty of support during their ordeal, and now they want to pay it forward. “We’re just trying to get the word out,” Mrs. Evans said. “We never realized until having to go through this how many children are affected by congenital heart birth defects, and anything we can do to help someone through this experience, and spread the importance of heart health, we will continue to do.”
If you go
What: American Heart Association Northeast PA Heart Walk
When and Where: Saturday, April 12, Nay Aug Park, Scranton; Saturday, May 31, Kirby Park, Kingston; registration, 9 a.m., walk 10 a.m.
Details: To register for the walk or donate to the cause, visit www.heart.org/northeastpawalk or contact Susan Wise at susan.wise@heart.org or 614-396-3507.
You must be logged in to post a comment.