Heart Transplant Recipient At Home

Two-year-old Keeten Heskett of Fayetteville laid in a bed April 6 at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock. He waited at the top of the list for a heart transplant. Northwest Arkansas Newspapers published a story that day about Keeten and local concerts sponsored by Ridgeview Baptist Church in Fayetteville to benefit the family.

At 5 p.m. April 6, medical staff rolled Keeten into the operating room to transplant his new heart. The heart became available more quickly than most imagined.

Wednesday, Keeten was driving his big toy truck around his home in Fayetteville - in fact, that was the first thing he did when he got home from the hospital.

Keeten earned his release from the hospital April 22, just 15 days after his transplant. He returned to the hospital Monday for a screening biopsy, which is common three weeks after a transplant, said his mother Lacey Heskett. She reported the tests came back good with no signs of rejection.

Before release, Keeten’s family ordered a mold inspection for their house, cleaned the air ducts and installed an ultraviolet light in the airconditioning/heating system to kill bacteria, Heskett said. The doctors didn’t require it, but suggested it so Keeten doesn’t get sick.

Because his young immune system has been compromised by the surgery, Keeten is not allowed to go to public places for three months following the transplant. For visits to doctors and the hospital, he wears a mask to keep away germs.

But at home, Keeten has free reign - even outdoors.

The Facebook page, “Prayers for Keeten,” shows pictures of the preschooler driving that truck and helping out at home.

“(The transplant) didn’t slow him down very much,” Heskett reported.

Ridgeview Baptist Church - where his grandmother attends with Keeten - presents another “Have-a-Heart” benefit concert at 6 p.m. May 11, with an offering benefiting the family. The Glen Faulkner Singers donated their gospel talents for the night.

The concert series continues on the second Saturday each month, explained church member Connie Stave. When the Heskett family’s situation settles, the offerings will be put to other causes.

The church is located at 1850 Huntsville Road in Fayetteville, 442-9201.

Religion, Pages 9 on 05/04/2013

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