Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.
Oliver is 13 months old and he is a little fighter. His Aunt Kristi and Uncle Blake have recently become guardians for Oliver after the unexpected death of his mother and they are planning to adopt Oliver. Oliver was born with a genetic disorder called Alagille syndrome. This disorder can affect the liver, heart, and other parts of the body. One of the major features of Alagille syndrome is liver damage. On August 9, 2018, Oliver underwent surgical procedures that were necessary in order for him to be eligible to be placed on the Liver Transplant list. He was supposed to go home the day after the surgery, but there were complications and he was admitted to the Pediatric ICU (PICU) at Texas Children's Hospital. He was put on a ventilator and is still currently on the ventilator as of today, August 24, 14 days later.
Kristi and Blake attend The Met Church in Houston, Texas and they have 2 sons that just started school this week. They are trying to juggle a lot right now to take care of their boys at home and also be at the hospital 24/7 for Oliver. This has been extremely difficult for them. They have had some major losses in the last year including the death of Kristi's Step-Father, her Father, and her sister several months ago. The death of one loved is hard enough, much less three immediate family members. There are other circumstances that have made this time quite difficult for this family including Kristi being diagnosed with Lupus last fall after her Step-Father had passed. As a part of becoming guardian to Oliver, Kristi was required to quit her job to be a full-time caregiver for Oliver. This has put a financial strain on them in addition to everything else. There are different ways to help this family.
They did not ask for this help, but when I offered to set up a meal train they gratefully agreed. I started the Meal Train 2 weeks ago and we have had a great response to their need. If you would like to help this family with meals please sign up
https://mealtrain.com/68v37z. Financial assistance is greatly appreciated as well. If you can provide any financial support this will help them cover costs of medical center parking, gas and dinners while Oliver is in hospital, as well as help with bills since they are adjusting to a single income. They have a PayPal account,
http://paypal.me/helpOliver (
http://paypal.me/helpOliver )
Gift cards are also helpful and can be mailed to:
15034 Rose Valley Dr. Houston, TX 77070
There is a guestbook on this site that you can use to send messages to Blake and Kristi. Messages of encouragement and prayers are amazing and a blessing!
PRAYERS ARE VERY MUCH NEEDED! This Family believes in the power of prayers. They have place their faith in Jesus Christ and their Savior and Lord and they are clinging to their faith as it is tested during these difficult trials they are facing. Thank you for being the hands and feet of Jesus in supporting this family in their time of need!
If you are wondering..My name is Christie and I am a friend of Blake and Kristi's. I offered to help them start this Caring Bridge Site because we used Caring Bridge when my husband, Michael, went through cancer treatments in 2009. It was a blessing to be able to share updates for friends and family and I thought this would be a blessing to Blake and Kristi too. I will be a co-author for Blake and Kristi and will indicate if I am writing the update. Thank you for taking time to care and love on this sweet family by reading their story, following their story as it continues, and providing support by prayer and any other means God leads you to support them.
God Bless You!
