When our daughter was just 13 months old, she received a heart and lung transplant.

She has defied every odd stacked against her, and today she is thriving — strong, joyful, and living a life that many once thought might not be possible.

Because of her transplant, she sees 11 specialists at UF Health and requires lifelong monitoring and care. Raising a child with a complex medical condition can cost between $1.4 and $2.4 million by the time they turn 18 — roughly 10 times the cost of raising a child without medical needs.

For most of her life, she qualified for Medicaid through Social Security due to her medical complexity. A few years ago, despite still being medically disabled, she lost that coverage because our household income increased.

We are a family of six living on one income. Even with private insurance, last year alone we accrued over $13,000 in medical expenses. To insure all of our children — including our transplant daughter — would cost approximately $1,200 per month, over $14,000 annually, before deductibles. Lifelong transplant care is not optional, and the costs are significant.

Our goal is simple: to ensure her care continues uninterrupted. Funds raised will go toward:
• Health insurance
• Specialist visits
• Ongoing transplant monitoring
• Out-of-pocket medical expenses

As you can imagine, this is hard for any family. Support here will give the Neira family time to explore other alternative routes for ongoing care, while keeping their daughter’s treatment consistent and uninterrupted.

The Neira family is known for how much they love and care for each other, and for the ways they pour into their community. They work tirelessly to provide for their family of six, and they’ve already made a remarkable impact on those around them.

Follow along here for updates — both Jesus and Krystina will be sharing milestones, victories, and glimpses of life in their world of transplant care.

She has already defied the odds once, and together, this family continues to show love, courage, and resilience every day.