7 News Belize

Baby Shantel Needs A Miracle
posted (March 11, 2011)
Baby Shantel Carr was born on Valentine 's Day - and only weighed five pounds. Today she is 3 weeks old and fighting to stay alive. That is because the newborn was diagnosed with a heart defect and will need to be flown out the country for surgery. Yesterday Her family told 7news that they need to raise 80 thousand Belize dollars in order for baby Shantel to get the proper treatment that she needs.

Monica Bodden
"When did you first realize that something was wrong with Shantel? I understand that you brought her home still not knowing that there was a problem."

Cynthia Carr, Mother
"I realize it like the 8th of this month, in the night she wasn't breathing well and then the second night I notice the same thing I thought that maybe it was a cold that she had an infection and I took her about after 11pm to the KHMH and they started her for respiratory problems. I am asthmatic and so they ask if anybody in the family was asthmatic and then I said yes and so they thought it was a asthma attack as well and they did some test and x-ray and some blood test and then shortly after a nurse came and say that the doctor told me that they will admit the baby and I said yes they just say that they will admit the baby and when they took us to the Pediatric Ward (peeds). The nurse asks why the baby was admitted and I told her that they never tell me anything about the test that they took. In the morning was when the doctors came around and look at the x-ray and start to check her heart and stuff and they say that the baby didn't have any infection. That the heart didn't have any hole or anything but that they heard a second sound in her heart and they thought it could be a hole, so they order a heart ultrasound and then Dr. Bulwer did the ultrasound for the heart and that's when he said that it wasn't a hole - it was one of the valve that was narrowed. When she breast feed, she only do it for a short while probably like 5 minutes or so and then she have to stop to breathe. when she was in the hospital - when i explain to Dr. Eck and he said that the reason why she did that is because the heart gets tired when she is feeding, that's why she stops so that she could breathe and then there are times when we see that she breathes very fast and heavy and then after a while she slows down and then you would see no movements like she is not breathing or anything and the one of the nurse at (Peeds) told me that when I see her not breathing - I have to stimulate her to start to breathe again. There are times when her little feet get blue and cold when I touch it. Then I usually use the heat of my hands to warm up her feet."

Monica Bodden
"What's your biggest fear?"

Cynthia Carr, Mother
"To either wake up or to check her one of these days to find that she is not breathing any at all and that she passes. They recommended us to "Gift for Life" and we talk to Mrs. Burke and she said that more than likely Shantel would have to go outside of Belize for corrective surgery. Probably around August or so when the team of specialist comes so that they can check her heart again. We would probably have to raise at least US$40,000.00."

Monica Bodden
"What do you guys plan to do to raise BZ$80,000.00?"

Cynthia Carr, Mother
"We plan to do fundraising every weekend - Fridays and Saturdays at the corner of Cemetery and Curassow streets and we plan to pit some bottles at the various super market for 'dollar drops' to start raise the funds and ask the public that they could support us by purchasing the food items and what we have for sale. Even the businesses community, if they can support by donating."

If anyone would like to assist baby Shantel you can do so by making a donation to account number 240527 at the Belize Bank or you can call the family at telephone number 626-6218… The family will be having a bar-b-q sale on Saturday.

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