Father and son with the same congenital heart defect, both had open-heart surgery within 6 weeks of each other, and have spent a combined 10 weeks in the hospital (with at least 3 months to go).
Kevin and Jamie Keeran, a paramedic and 911 dispatcher, got married in March 2024 and welcomed their beautiful baby boy, Hudson, in April 2025. A few months before he was born, they learned that Hudson had a heart condition known as truncus arteriosus. This is a critical congenital heart defect that significantly affects blood flow and oxygen delivery to the body and requires major open-heart surgery soon after birth. Because of this, he had to be born and stay at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in Charleston, hours away from home.
Hudson underwent the first surgery to repair his heart at 4 days old. After several grueling weeks of recovery, Hudson was doing well, and his personality was starting to shine. Then, due to unexpected complications, at 6 weeks old, Hudson became septic and underwent another major emergency surgery. Over the course of 4 surgeries, they had to remove half of his small intestines. This set back Hudson’s recovery, and he will be in the hospital for several more months relearning to eat and digest food. While the complications from this should not be permanent, they will be long-term, and it may take years for him to fully recover.
Kevin, Hudson’s dad, was born in 1996 with the same congenital heart defect and had open-heart surgery at 11 days old. He spent 4 months in the hospital and underwent a total of 3 surgeries during his time there. He was sent home with a ventilator and tracheostomy tube and required home health nurses until he was 3.5 years old. Due to the nature of the heart defect, it requires multiple surgeries and regular upkeep of the heart (the same will be true for Hudson). Kevin underwent his second open-heart surgery at 8 years old. His third open-heart surgery was in May 2025 (when Hudson was 6 weeks old), only one day after Hudson’s emergency GI surgery.
As you can expect, this has been an incredibly difficult time for the entire family. Kevin and Jamie have had to live in an Airbnb in Charleston for the last 10 weeks in order to be with their son and support him during recovery. They will now have to find more housing as Hudson is expected to be in the hospital for several more months and face months’ worth of medical bills.
Any support you can give to this amazing family would mean the world to them and to baby Hudson!
Funds will primarily be used towards medical bills and paying for housing while Kevin and Jaime are with Hudson in Charleston.
