Groundbreaking surgery saves young boy's life at Herma Heart Institute

“On April 20, 2017, BrentLee’s father rushed him to Oconto Falls Memorial Hospital. A flight-for-life helicopter then airlifted him to St. Vincent Hospital in Green Bay. He was suffering from congestive heart failure, an emergency that would require one more trip to [the Herma Heart Institute at] Children's Wisconsin.

Before the ambulance departed with BrentLee, staff allowed the parents to say goodbye.

Chelsey stood there, exhausted and afraid. It had been her first day at a new job and she'd just finished a 12-hour shift.

'I hugged and kissed him,' she said. 'I told him I loved him.'

Robert, not a religious man, had only prayed a few times in his life. He prayed that night.”

That chilling moment was just the beginning of BrentLee’s incredible journey. You don’t want to miss Toddler with failing heart rescued by groundbreaking surgery at Children’s Wisconsin, the harrowing and deeply emotional story about a young boy “born with blond hair, beguiling eyes…and a handful of holes in his heart” and the Herma Heart Institute doctor who did what had never been done before to save his life.

Children's Wisconsin Media Relations

The Herma Heart Institute at Children’s Wisconsin is one of the nation’s top pediatric heart programs and the largest in the state. We care for patients with congenital heart disease from before birth through adulthood, and we consistently report some of the best surgical outcomes for even the most complex types of heart disease.