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Three-year-old Lincoln Holdaway, son of Jason and Heather Blackburn Holdaway of West Jefferson, has atrial septal defect, a hole in his heart that needs repair. He is scheduled for surgery Oct. 6 at Duke.
Heather, who works as finance officer for the Town of West Jefferson, said Lincoln was born with a hole in the upper chamber of his heart on the right side. His heart is enlarged, she said, because it has to pump harder to compensate for the hole.
“It took us awhile to figure out what was wrong with him,” she said. “We nearly lost him a couple of times, and he turned blue on us. Doctors thought they would be able to fix him with an 'umbrella' surgery when he was 4 or 5, but they decided not to wait.”
When asked if Lincoln understands what is happening to him, Heather said, “He will complain some with his chest hurting, saying, 'Mommy, will it be okay?' and that just breaks my heart. I just told him they were going to put a Band-aid on his heart. They say this surgery will fix the problem. They will repair his heart and it will grow normally with him.”
Heather said Lincoln's 13-year-old sister is worried sick about her brother and asks lots of questions. The family is relying on their faith and their community to help them through.
Sarah Goodman is coordinating the fundraiser on Saturday. It will take place from 4:30-7:30 p.m. at Fletcher Memorial Baptist Church fellowship hall. The meal will include spaghetti, salad, bread, dessert and drink for $7. Folks can dine-in or take-out. The silent auction will take place during the meal and all proceeds go to the family for medical and travel expenses. You can also donate through LifeStore Bank to “Lincoln's Benefit” under Heather's name.
There are lots of great items for the auction including artwork from Stephen Shoemaker, gift certificates for golf, meals at local restaurants, automotive services, personal care and retail shopping. Furniture items include a handmade cedar bench and solid oak dresser. Other items include a lap quilt, Ashe County Cheese gift basket, toolbox and much more. Ingle's is donating spaghetti as is Mt. Jefferson Church of the Nazarene. Dr Pepper and West Jefferson Fire Department are donating drinks.
If you would like to donate something for the auction, you can bring it by West Jefferson Town Hall on Friday.
Heather said she and her family are thankful to everyone who has contributed to this event, and she is especially grateful to her co-workers for donating some of their sick leave in order for her to be off with Lincoln. He will be in the hospital for at least four to five days and face at least six weeks of recovery.
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