May Benefit Set for Ailing Manchester Toddler

Daniel Morin has struggled since his birth in September of 2010. 

He has had two open heart surgeries to close holes in his heart and one open heart surgery to replace a faulty valve with a prosthetic valve. Blood transfusions are a common occurrance. In just the last week, Daniel has had four, his mother Donna Morin said.

"He is up to 32 of them" total, she said. 

To help the family keep up with bills, a fundraiser for the toddler — coordinated by the Bleeding Hearts Benefit nonprofit established to help support the family — has been set for Saturday, May 5, from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. at the Cambridge Inn, 19 Summerhill Rd. in Spotswood. 

The transfusions take a toll on the family since each round-trip to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is about 100 miles from Manchester.

"We are overwhelmed with bills, and gas is killing us making so many trips back and forth to CHOP," Donna Morin said. The 19-month-old is having trouble keeping his complete blood count levels up. Blood platelet studies are also being done by doctors, his mother said.

Daniel spent 7 and a half months at CHOP following his birth. When he came home last April, he needed 16 hours of nursing care each day to attend to his multiple needs. He depends on a machine to feed him through a tube in his stomach and is on 24-hour oxygen. He receives occupational, physical, speech and feeding therapies. Plus, the boy must make frequent visits to his various doctors.

In addition, due to his prosthetic heart valve, Daniel requires blood thinners to keep his blood from clotting, so he must go for weekly blood tests to manage the drug levels properly.

Due to his physical ailments, his mother said her son cannot do many of the things other toddlers do.

"He takes nothing by mouth, he doesn't talk or crawl," she said in January. "He sees, he hears, mentally he's fine."

Morin, a single mother, has two older children, a 26-year-old daughter and a 16-year-old son who is a student at . Morin lives in the home where six generations of her family have lived. But, now because of Daniel's high medical bills, she said the house is in foreclosure.

"We don't get to be the normal family," she said. "Your life is not your own. Your life is doctor's visits, labs, hospital visits. That's my job."

Collection buckets and a 50/50 raffle are set for the May benefit. Those who cannot attend but would still like to help can donation to the family online through Paypal or by sending a check to: Bleeding Hearts Benefit, 616 Wellington Ave., Toms River, NJ, 08757.

Those interested can receive updates on Daniel's progress through the Bleeding Hearts Benefit Facebook page.