Kelowna baby never had a chance

KELOWNA – A Kelowna family is struggling to cope with news the baby they are expecting won’t live to see his first birthday.

Kristy Youngman and her common-law husband John Sanderson’s 11th child is due this spring. An initial anatomy scan showed abnormalities so an in-depth ultrasound and genetic testing was done.

According to Youngman’s daughter Shayla Colluney, the baby has multiple deformities in his heart, brain and kidneys and some of his internal organs are growing outside his body, which is being kept alive by his mother.

“The pregnancy is fine,” she says. "But after he’s born his heart won’t be able to keep going. It will give out within a couple days.”

Surgery is not an option.

“I’m not too sure how we cope,” Colluney says. “(My mom) has to go the next 20 weeks growing a baby that’s not going to live. She’s feeling his kicks and she’s not coping too well.”

Krista and John will have to travel to Vancouver several times leading up to delivery, and they will have to spend three weeks at the Vancouver Children’s Hospital 'until he’s gone.'

“There isn’t a way to cope with it,” Colluney says. “We’re just trying to figure out a way to make it easier.”

They have launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise $2,000 so the baby’s father can take time off work. So far they have raised more than $1,000.

“We don’t really want to look at all the other things that are going to have to happen (after the delivery) just yet,” Colluney says. “Right now we’re just focusing on pushing through.”

If you would like to help, you can visit this YouCaring webpage.

To contact a reporter for this story, email Adam Proskiw at aproskiw@infonews.ca or call 250-718-0428. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.