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Two boys form special bond through heart transplant journey
Emily Holwick
Two boys form special bond through heart transplant journey
OF RECORD HIGHS. TWO LITTLE BOYS ARE PROVING. THEY HAVE A LOT OF HEART AFTER GOING THROUGH THE TRANSPLANT PROCESS TOGETHER. THEY WERE BOTH AT CHILDREN’S. SEE FOR MONTHS WAITING FOR HEART DONORS NOW A MONTH AFTER THEIR SURGERY. WE MET THEM AND THEIR FAMILIES AND WITNESSED THEIR SPECIAL BOND. IT MAY LOOK LIKE A ROUTINE CHECKUP BIG BREATH, BUT THE PAST SEVEN MONTHS HAVE BEEN ANYTHING BUT ROUTINE FOR THE STEEL FAMILY. THE JOURNEY OF SELF WAS ON THAT HAS BEEN REALLY MIRACULOUS A LOT OF WAYS THEY FOUND OUT THERE FIVE YEAR OLD SON. JAKE NEEDED A HEART TRANSPLANT LAST NOVEMBER. HE WAS HOSPITALIZED AT CHILDREN’S MERCY. WELL, HE WAITED FOR A DONOR SOME CHILDREN GET TRANSPLANTS IN SIX WEEKS SOME CHILDREN. IT’S 18 MONTHS SOME CHILDREN NEVER COME HOME AS THEY FACED THE UNKNOWN ANOTHER FAMILY WAS SIMILAR JOURNEY LITTLE AJ WAS IN A ROOM NEARBY ALSO IN NEED OF A NEW HEART. OH, HE’S A STRONG LITTLE THING THE TWO BECAME FAST FRIENDS VISITING EACH OTHER AND PLAYING TOGETHER AS THE WEEKS AND MONTHS WENT BY I COULD DEFINITELY TELL THAT JAKE DEFINITELY MADE HIS WORLD. HE SEEMED A LOT HAPPIER FOR JAKE. JUST HAVING ANOTHER CHILD TO BE ABLE TO RELATE TO AND KIND OF PLAY BIG BROTHER TOO, YOU KNOW REALLY MEANT A LOT TO HIM THEN LAST MONTH BOTH GOT THE SAVING CALL THEY HAD THEIR SURGERIES JUST FOUR DAYS APART AND AFTER FINALLY BEING ABLE TO GO HOME THIS CHECKUP ALSO BECAME A REUNION. NOW AS AGENT GETS READY FOR HIS FIRST BIRTHDAY AND A PARTY. JAKE WILL BE AT BOTH FAMILIES HAVE A LOT TO CELEBRATE. IT DOES LIKE GIVE YOU AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE ON LIFE. FILLS YOU A JOY ON JUST VERY SIMPLE SIMPLE THINGS. STORY, ISN’T IT? SO MOST OF THE CHILDREN ACTUALLY WAIT ON THE HEART TRANSPLANT LIST FOR SIX TO TWELVE MONTHS SO TOUGH FOR THESE FAMILIES. THEY SAY, OF COURSE, IT’S DIFFICULT TO FIND A DONOR. BECAUSE THE HEART FOR CHILD USUALLY HAS TO BE FROM ANOTHER YOUNG CHILD. SO BOTH FAMILIES SAY THAT THEY’RE HOPING TO MEET THE DONORS FAMILIES SOMEDAY TO SHARE THEIR GRATITUDE. THEY’VE BEEN THROUGH SO MUCH BUT YOU KNOW, THERE’S SUC
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Two boys form special bond through heart transplant journey
Emily Holwick
Two boys from the Kansas City area are proving they have a lot of heart after going through the transplant process together. They were both at Children's Mercy Hospital for months waiting for heart donors. Now, a month after their surgeries, sister station KMBC met the boys and their families, and witnessed their special bond. “The journey itself was one that has been really miraculous in a lot of ways,” said Jonathan Steele.He and his wife Lisa found out their 5-year-old son Jake needed a heart transplant last November. He was hospitalized while he waited for a donor.“Some children get transplants in six weeks, some children it's 18 months, some children never come home,” Lisa Steele said.As they faced the unknown, another family was on a similar journey. A.J. Winkler was in a room nearby, also in need of a new heart.“Oh, he's a strong little thing,” his mom, Trista Yates, said as she held her almost-1-year-old in her lap.A.J. and Jake became fast friends, visiting each other and playing together as the weeks and months went by.“I could definitely tell that Jake definitely made his world,” Yates said. “He seemed a lot happier.”“For Jake, just having another child to be able to relate to and kind of play big brother to, you know, really meant a lot to him,” Lisa Steele said.In early June, both boys finally got the life-saving call. They had their heart transplant surgeries just four days apart. After finally being able to go home, a post-surgery checkup also became a reunion for the boys and their families.Now, as A.J. gets ready for his first birthday and a party Jake and his parents will attend, both families have a lot to celebrate.“He's definitely a little hero,” Yates said.“It does, like, give you an entirely different perspective on life,” Lisa Steele said. “Fills you with joy on just very simple, simple things.”Both families say they hope to meet the donors' families someday to share their gratitude.“I would just like them to be able to see Jake and see him play, and I think that that would probably be enough for them to see that joy,” Lisa Steele said.“We actually got the heartbeat recording of the new heart,” Yates said. “We’re gonna put it inside a Build-a-Bear and then give it to the family.”Most children wait on the heart transplant list for an average of 6 to 12 months. It can be difficult to find a donor, since the heart usually has to be from a young child as well.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. —

Two boys from the Kansas City area are proving they have a lot of heart after going through the transplant process together.

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They were both at Children's Mercy Hospital for months waiting for heart donors. Now, a month after their surgeries, sister station KMBC met the boys and their families, and witnessed their special bond.

“The journey itself was one that has been really miraculous in a lot of ways,” said Jonathan Steele.

He and his wife Lisa found out their 5-year-old son Jake needed a heart transplant last November. He was hospitalized while he waited for a donor.

“Some children get transplants in six weeks, some children it's 18 months, some children never come home,” Lisa Steele said.

As they faced the unknown, another family was on a similar journey. A.J. Winkler was in a room nearby, also in need of a new heart.

“Oh, he's a strong little thing,” his mom, Trista Yates, said as she held her almost-1-year-old in her lap.

A.J. and Jake became fast friends, visiting each other and playing together as the weeks and months went by.

“I could definitely tell that Jake definitely made his world,” Yates said. “He seemed a lot happier.”

“For Jake, just having another child to be able to relate to and kind of play big brother to, you know, really meant a lot to him,” Lisa Steele said.

In early June, both boys finally got the life-saving call. They had their heart transplant surgeries just four days apart. After finally being able to go home, a post-surgery checkup also became a reunion for the boys and their families.

Now, as A.J. gets ready for his first birthday and a party Jake and his parents will attend, both families have a lot to celebrate.

“He's definitely a little hero,” Yates said.

“It does, like, give you an entirely different perspective on life,” Lisa Steele said. “Fills you with joy on just very simple, simple things.”

Both families say they hope to meet the donors' families someday to share their gratitude.

“I would just like them to be able to see Jake and see him play, and I think that that would probably be enough for them to see that joy,” Lisa Steele said.

“We actually got the heartbeat recording of the new heart,” Yates said. “We’re gonna put it inside a Build-a-Bear and then give it to the family.”

Most children wait on the heart transplant list for an average of 6 to 12 months. It can be difficult to find a donor, since the heart usually has to be from a young child as well.