Three-year-old shows a lot of heart

Three-year-old Oamaru girl Hannah Sawers and her mum Jodi Robson are hitting the streets of Oamaru to raise money and awareness for @Heart. Photo / Rebecca Ryan

On average, 12 babies are born in New Zealand with a heart defect every week, often receiving their first battle scars from open-heart surgery in the first months of their lives.

Three-year-old Oamaru girl Hannah Sawers was one of those babies.

Since having open-heart surgery at just three-months-old, she has shown tremendous strength, fighting spirit and resilience.

The Oamaru girl still has small holes in her heart with a slight murmur and she gets tired very easily, but she has impressed everyone with her recovery.

Her mother Jodi Robson said it had been through the support of @Heart (formerly Heart Children NZ) that they had made it through and this week she is asking Oamaruvians to support the organisation.

This week is @Heart's Awareness Week and a series of activities will take place in different parts of the country, including an Oamaru street appeal on Friday.

Miss Robson and Hannah will be out on the streets in Oamaru on Friday, collecting money for @Heart which will stay local.

"We have a good half dozen families in Oamaru and I know there's a couple of others not registered but have conditions," she said.

"I was quite overwhelmed to find out that there were half a dozen families in Oamaru, it's great to have each other's support and meet other people in similar situations."

After birth, Hannah was diagnosed with Down Syndrome and following a wide range of tests it was discovered she had two holes in her heart.

The valves had also not separated so "good and bad" blood was mixing, affecting her oxygen levels.

At three-months she was taken to Starship Hospital for open-heart surgery.

"I was 21 when I gave birth to her, it was scary. I think the scariest part of it was not knowing what it actually meant for her," Miss Robson said.

"Of course doctors told us there was the chance she might need an operation after she was diagnosed with Down Syndrome, but when you've got this new-born in your hands it's quite scary, but as any parent would say - 'you've got to do what you've got to do'."

The three-year-old has been walking for three months now.

"She's doing really well now, last year she was still practically a baby, she's just grown up so much in the last year. Her energy doesn't last all day, now that she's been walking, and she does get quite tired with all of the extra movement," Miss Robson said.

"It makes me think that there's hope of not having another operation. They say she still has holes in her heart, but look at her."

Hannah had a way of lighting up the room, Miss Robson said.

"With the Downs, she is real loving and affectionate, she just puts a smile on everybody's face," she said.

"When we're walking down the street she'll be blowing kisses and waving like she's the Queen and you see everybody walk past and their faces just light up."

Hannah has already defied the odds with her recovery in the past year, and her mother is not stopping there. "I want her to prove everyone wrong. I want her to do as much as she possibly can," she said.

"Everyone puts a label on her, they just think there's this one image with Down Syndrome, like it's all the same.

"We have a lot of Down Syndrome people locally competing with the Special Olympics, but as far as I'm concerned why can't Hannah compete in the world Olympics with everyone else? If that's what she wants to do, I'll do my very best to get her there."