One year after receiving heart transplant, boy celebrates 'heartiversary'
Owen Payton turned 9 in March, but the date of May 8, 2014 will always have special meaning for him and his family.
Friday marked one year since Owen received a lifesaving heart transplant, and his family thought it fitting to name their party in his honor a "heartiversary."
The celebration at the Paytons, who near West Chicago, also honored of the unknown donor who provided Owen with a new heart.
"Every day, we're thankful and grateful," said Christina Payton, Owen's mother. "We're just celebrating life today."
Payton said the family doesn't know who the donor is, but they will be writing a letter to the transplant center where Owen received the heart.
They hope to contact the donor's family to express their gratitude.
The Payton family is also planning to plant a tree in their backyard this weekend in honor of the donor.
On Friday, the crimson king maple sat in their yard, with three heart balloons attached to it.
Owen was on a heart transplant list for more than two years - after he had already undergone three open heart surgeries since being born with multiple congenital heart defects.
He was placed on the transplant waiting list in March 2012, after being previously diagnosed with protein-losing enteropathy.
Doctors told the family to be prepared to get a phone call anytime if a good heart became available.
"The team said, 'You need to be ready and have your bags packed,'" Payton said. "To be quite honest, we weren't ready. We weren't prepared. We thought we wouldn't get the call, so we didn't pack any bags.
"For two years, every day, we had to live by the phone."
Then, the call came.
Owen was at school, and his parents were at work, but they rushed to Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago. After some last-minute preparations, Owen's heart transplant took place the next day.
And since then, he's been doing great, his mom says.
"It's been a blessing."