After a lifetime of struggling with heart trouble, 2-year-old Dylan Kissic died Tuesday morning in a hospital in Little Rock, Ark."We’re just devastated," said his aunt, Vicky Kissic, better known as Bic Bic to Dylan. "He was our angel."
Dylan’s struggle began early. When he was just 2 weeks old, doctors diagnosed him with congenital heart disease.
After several surgeries, they decided his heart was no longer strong enough to support his body, and the search for a new one began. Dylan had been confined to the hospital since last fall, while his parents patiently waited as his name climbed the list of potential heart recipients.
In late March, he was flown from Children’s Hospital in Birmingham to Children’s Hospital in Little Rock, where doctors were more experienced with high-risk patients such as Dylan’s.
Still, no heart had become available and Dylan’s health was failing.
In early April, doctors at Children’s Hospital installed a mechanical heart, known as a Berlin Heart, to do the work that Dylan’s no longer could. During the procedure, a tube running to his heart was damaged, causing a stroke and injuries to three portions of his brain.
But the family, relying on faith and prayers, remained hopeful that Dylan would pull through.
For a while it looked as though all the prayers had been answered.
Dylan had begun speaking again, and as of last week, he was walking around his hospital unit with the Berlin Heart at his side.
On Monday, though, he took a turn for the worse.
According to Kissic, Dylan began having "stroke after stroke until there was just too much brain damage."
His father, Jeremy, was called out to Little Rock to be with his son and wife, Lisa, who had not left Dylan since he was hospitalized last fall.
Their son died shortly after 11 a.m. Tuesday.
Though his life was brief, Dylan made an impression on the lives of many.
The family constantly spoke of the way the boy would put smiles on the faces of all the doctors and nurses in Birmingham and in Little Rock.
Residents in his hometown contributed to the family financially through charity events and an account at Heritage South Federal Credit Union. Several area businesses kept donation canisters on their counters. The family’s church, Mignon Baptist, helped with meals and housing.
"He left his little footprint on everybody’s heart," said Kissic. "We’re just thankful for the time we had with him."
Dylan’s affect on others is also evident in the hundreds of message board posts on www.carepages.com in which family, friends and strangers alike shared their prayers with the Kissics.
"It was just awesome," Kissic said of the posts. "They came from everywhere, just everybody."
On behalf of the family, Kissic thanked all who had prayed for or contributed financially to the family.
She said Dylan’s parents will return home to make the funeral arrangements Wednesday. Though a date and time have not been set, the viewing and services are planned to be held at Mignon Baptist Church.
Curtis and Son Funeral Home will announce the arrangements today.
