Josh Svendsen (right) with his father, Jono Svendsen, who now volunteers at the Heart Kids Camp. Photo / George Novak
Josh Svendsen (right) with his father, Jono Svendsen, who now volunteers at the Heart Kids Camp. Photo / George Novak
A young man and his dad are showing other young people that just because you have been dealt a tough hand, it doesn't mean you can't live life to the full.
Josh Svendsen, 15, was born with coarctation of the aorta, a genetic condition in which the aorta narrows andcauses the heart to work harder.
"Which means my aorta was the size of a pinhead. I had to have an operation to open it up," he said.
What Josh doesn't say is that he was only eight days old when the surgery took place - and the operation left him with a scar across his left shoulder blade from neck to armpit.
The "shark bite" - Josh's surgical scar. Photo / George Novak
"He had a pretty lumpy ride on the way up [to Starship Hospital] and things started to deteriorate pretty quickly," his dad, Jono Svendsen, said.
"Just by chance", Svendsen said, they happened to see Dr Kirsten Finucane, one of the world's leading cardio surgeons.
"Within a few hours, I guess, of him hitting Starship they'd diagnosed exactly what was wrong with him, what they needed to do, and rolled him into surgery."
The scar from surgery is lovingly referred to by Svendsen as Josh's "shark bite".
Josh said, despite the doctors sometimes telling him he shouldn't do certain activities, like contact sports, he still tries to live like a normal kid.
He's involved in Army Cadets and surf life saving and wants to be a paramedic when he leaves school.
"It doesn't really limit me."
However, his dad said he was "definitely" one of the lucky ones, "no two ways about it".
"He's still required to get checked up every year, but he's been able to play rugby and water polo, things like that."
Svendsen also volunteers at a camp for other kids with heart conditions like Josh's, so he knows just how lucky Josh has been.
Josh said he loves attending the Heart Kids Camp, making "really good friends" with the other kids, and knowing they all have something in common helps.
The Heart Kids Camp is held annually in Henderson, Auckland, for 7 to 18-year-olds, and Svendsen started volunteering at the camp when Josh was 8.
His wife, Tash, went to the first few camps that Josh was involved in and "raved about it", he said.
"She said 'you need to get on one of these things' and it kind of went from there ... it's incredible."
Svendsen says he comes away from the camp "super-charged".
Jono Svendsen manned the water slide at this year's Heart Kids camp. Photo / Supplied
He said when he gives the briefing at the start of camp, he warns the new parent helpers that they will come away "absolutely knackered", but he wouldn't change it for anything.
The whole camp is to show the kids that despite their condition, they can still do whatever they set their hearts on, he said.
"Which just makes the whole thing cooler, when you see them having a good time," Svendsen said.
To those thinking about volunteering, he only has one thing to say:
