Kenzie

Sitting with seven year old Kenzie in the SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital cafeteria, you would never guess the journey she has traveled since birth. Happy, energetic, and proudly showing her scars, Kenzie has been writing her own story from the very beginning.

“Kenzie is our miracle baby,” says her mom, Heather. After years of infertility and the grace of IVF, Heather and her husband, Kyle, hoped parenthood would bring fewer hospital visits, not more. That hope was shaken at a 20‑week ultrasound when an enlarged heart was discovered. A rushed follow‑up visit delivered devastating news just days before Christmas., Their daughter would need heart surgery shortly after birth.

Within days, the family was at the St. Louis Fetal Care Institute, where they met Kenzie’s care team and learned she had Tetralogy of Fallot with an absent pulmonary valve. Heather’s pregnancy progressed smoothly, and Kenzie was delivered by C‑section on    April 5, 2018. Though serious interventions were anticipated, Kenzie surprised everyone, needing only minimal oxygen. She spent her first 31 days growing stronger in Cardinal Glennon’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).

Kenzie’s first open‑heart surgery came in May, followed by multiple additional surgeries throughout her first year of life. Extended hospital stays, feeding challenges, oxygen support, and monitors became part of her daily life. She celebrated her first birthday in the hospital, surrounded by caregivers who had become family.

From 2019 to 2022, Kenzie thrived mostly at home, supported by routine cardiology care and therapies. In 2022, doctors discovered severe scoliosis, which worsened despite bracing. In May 2025, Kenzie underwent surgery to place magnetic growing rods in her spine. The results were immediate and remarkable, improving lung function, increased endurance, and a dramatic reduction in spinal curvature.

Today, Kenzie spends her days swimming, helping on the family farm, riding her ATV, and simply being a kid. Inspired by the care her family received, mom, Heather will graduate as a registered nurse this fall, hoping one day to care for families just like hers.

How CMN funds help Kenzie and kids like her:
CMN funding played an important role in Kenzie’s journey by supporting the St. Louis Fetal Care Institute, where she received her prenatal diagnosis and coordinated care. This investment helped give Kenzie the strongest possible start and a team prepared to care for her complex needs.