Less than four weeks after receiving a liver transplant, 7-month-old Ajia Mae Vincent died from liver failure Tuesday at Stanford Medical Center's Lucille Packard Children's Hospital in Palo Alto, Calif.
Born Aug. 8, 2002 to Cyndi and Mel Vincent, Ajia was diagnosed in October with biliary atresia, a congenital liver disease. Biliary atresia is the congenital absence or closure of the ducts that drain bile from the liver.
The family is seeking donations to help pay for the cost of transporting Ajia's body from Palo Alto to Carson City. FitzHenry's Funeral Home in Carson City has offered to perform the burial at no cost to the Vincents, but the expense of transporting her body needs to be paid first. Then her body can be returned to Carson City to be laid to rest.
"I'm waiting for the family's social worker to call me back with the cost of the transport," said family friend Randi Wright, also known as Mustang Sallie.
"The family just doesn't have the money for it. The medical fees (for the operation) are outrageous; they'll never get out of debt."
A fund has been established with Bank of the West in Carson City. The account number is 248057580.
"Cyndi is just so distraught. We just need a little help getting Ajia home and getting her buried," Wright said. "We can't even bury her until her body is home. Since she was born, she has been home, maybe, five weeks."
Wright, on behalf of Ajia's family, thanked the community for their contributions and prayers for their daughter.
YOU CAN HELP
What: Transportation cost
Who: Ajia Mae Vincent
Where: Bank of the West account No. 248057580