New Jersey family celebrates Heart Awareness Month, Valentine’s Day with grit and love
By Stephanie Stahl
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HADDON TOWNSHIP, New Jersey (KYW) — February is Heart Awareness Month, and with Valentine’s Day approaching, the holiday holds special meaning for a South Jersey family.
In Haddon Township, 5-year-old Crew Dawson cuts out paper hearts with his family for Valentine’s Day weekend — however, his heart is a little more complicated.
“He’s had three open heart surgeries. At least two heart caths,” Crew’s mom Jana Dawson said. “There’s been a lot of scary moments but this kid is just so resilient.”
Crew’s fortitude earned him the nickname “Gritty.”
“His personality is very much like the flyers mascot — he’s bubbly and little crazy,” Crew’s dad Jared Dawson said. “He just had a spirit about him that was not going to give up.”
In his customized T-shirt, Crew and his family are helping the American Heart Association raise awareness for Heart Month.
At school, Crew is jumping rope as part of the “kids heart challenge,” where students learn about heart health, and help raise awareness and money for the heart association.
Patty Sayles is a Physical Education teacher who runs the heart challenge at Crew’s school and says she loves the program.
The family is focusing on fun activities, knowing Crew faces a lifetime of heart issues that he’s tackling with grit.
“Its a journey I never thought I’d be on,” Jana Dawson said. “You don’t know what this life is like until you’re in it.”
For now this journey is about celebrating love and joy.
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