Six-month-old Diego Herrera, son of Marie Claire and Arquimedes Herrera, left Boston Children’s Hospital on Wednesday after undergoing open-heart surgery for congenital heart defects.
The Herreras, who came from Panama to seek medical treatment for Diego in the United States, are living in Boston University Professor Karen Jacobs’ two-room apartment in Student Village II in an effort to ease the financial burdens of the family, who was trying to pay for their son’s operation.
“It has taken a village to help Diego, and that village is Boston University,” Jacobs, a professor of occupational therapy in Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said.
The Herreras had already raised $55,000 for Diego’s surgery, Jacobs said, but they still needed help to get him treatment in time.
The family received a $5,000 donation from the Brookline Rotary Club, among donations from Gift of Life New England and other organizations, and a sponsorship from the Sargent College Rotaract Club, Jacobs said.
“[Diego’s] mom and dad actually raised money for his surgery,” Jacobs said. “His mom’s a doctor and his dad’s an architect, but that wasn’t enough to get them into Children’s Hospital fast enough because Diego’s surgery was really life and death.”
Diego spent five days in intensive care and nine days in the cardiology room, Marie Claire said. The surgery itself, she said, lasted nine hours.
Members of the Rotary and Rotaract Clubs have attended appointments with the Herreras and given rides to and from the hospital. Meanwhile, students from Rotaract, the Sargent House and the BU Student Occupational Therapy Association have cooked meals for the family and conversed with the parents, she said.
“Diego’s story touches the hearts of the students,” Jacobs said.
“They love having people around… It’s a nice way for the community to come together and support the family,” said College of Engineering graduate student Emily Palmer, who has visited the family.
Rotaract Club President Cristie Siegele, who speaks Spanish fluently, said that she has gotten to know the Helreras on a more personal level.
“I’ve made multiple visits to the hospital. They have my personal email, so we’ve [communicated] through emails,“ Siegele, a Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences junior, said. “I feel like they’ve been open to every student.”
Diego is the third child whom Jacobs has housed, she said. The first two, eight-year-old Melvin from El Salvador and two-year-old Bridget from Panama, were also scheduled for open-heart surgery. The Rotary Club sponsored Melvin in 2005 and Bridget in 2008, Jacobs said, after she received permission from Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore and former Executive Vice President Joseph Mercurio.
BU graduate Vicki Hall, a former president of the Rotaract Club, said that the club raised half of the $5,000 for Melvin’s sponsorship and received the other half from an outside donor. The club has worked with the Brookline Rotary Club and Gift for Life to help children from all over the world who need open-heart surgery, Hall said.
“To realize the scale and scope of it all and to know that you were an instrumental part of this, makes you see the grand scheme of things,” she said.
The Herreras said they admitted Diego for treatment in Panama and Colombia, but were eventually told that their best option was to bring Diego to Boston Children’s Hospital. Before receiving Rotary Club’s donation, the Helreras said they raised $55,000 from donations they got on street corners and grocery stories back home in Panama.
“It was an extremely difficult task,” Marie Claire said. “If it hadn’t been for our family, our friends and our acquaintances, we wouldn’t be here.”
“Boston Children’s Hospital is, after all, the best in the world,” Arquimedes Herrera said. “We know that Diego’s situation is really complicated, but [the doctors] never denied us anything.”
Since the surgery, the Helreras said they noticed that Diego’s appetite has decreased. They plan to take him to the doctor, but they said they still expect that he will recover after the two surgeries that will take place in the next three weeks.
“It’s very difficult because a baby can never tell you what symptoms he feels. You feel impotent because you can’t do anything,” Helrera said.
Marie Claire said they plan to spend the rest of their time in StuVi II, visiting New Hampshire occasionally to see their friends Mike and Yasmin Courtney, whom they met in Panama.
“Mike and Yasmin have been really integral as well. They’ve been seeing them twice a week,” Jacobs said. “They’re these angels, people that don’t really know this family that have reached out.”
Hall said that the Rotaract Club’s efforts have not only provided children with a second chance of life, but have also enabled students to form a connection with people they would not have met otherwise.
“It’s a connection on another level, just knowing you form a bond with them,” Hall said.
“It’s about supporting the parents. Just being there for them is just so rewarding,” Siegele said.
Staff writer Allison Deangelis contributed to the reporting of this article.
Editor’s note: The interview with the Herrera family was conducted in Spanish and then translated by the writer.
CORRECTION: In the printed version of this article, the family’s last name was incorrectly written as Helrera.
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I am Shirley MacPherson, from The Rotary Club of Brookline. Dayse Sena,also from the Rotary club
visited Diago, and his mom and dad often during the first several weeks. Dayse and i got too know
Marie Clare, and her husband Kimo very well, it was heartwrenching too see how much they were
going trough, Also so difficult too see that little boy go through so much, Dayse, Karen and and i were
up late at night sending emails, and just praying that things would turn out well. The staff were amazing at childrens hospital
as well as their good friends Yasmin, and Mike. They are very close to Diago, mom and dad.
He looks so much better now, and we are so greatful to all involved in Diago’s care. He looks so much better
now, and hope too be in touch after their return to Panama.