BAKERSFIELD, CA- About 2,000 residents will be at Cal State Bakersfield Saturday morning for the annual Bakersfield Heart and Stroke Walk to raise awareness of those fighting heart diseases. Some of the strongest in the battle are children.
Charlie Skelton is one of just 960 babies a year born with half a heart, according to the CDC. She was born with a birth defect called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome which caused only the right side of her heart to fully develop.
"As a mom you love your kids, and you'd give them your heart if you could," said Joslynn Skelton, Charlie's Mother.
Not many children make it into adulthood with this condition, but to increase the chances many have operations to help circulate blood flow. Charlie had open heart surgery just six days after being born.
Doctors at Children's Hospital of Los Angeles said she would be in the hospital four to six weeks recovering.
But Charlie had other plans.
"She came home 11 days post-op. She came home faster than any other baby and we were just ridiculously proud of her and how well she did. She was kind of crowned the rock star at CHLA," said Skelton.
Rockstars run in the Skelton family. Charlie's sister Makayla won an award for asking people to donate to the American Heart Association on her 11th birthday, instead of giving gifts. She raised $2,500.
"I did this for Charlie because I think that it would be nice for my sister to have a cure so I can walk her to her first day of school, I can teach her how to surf and I can be in her wedding," said Makayla. "And I think not only to find a cure for Charlie but to find a cure for the millions of babies that are out there who have it."
About sixty members of Charlie's family will join her Saturday morning during the heart walk.
So far Charlie's team has raised over $4200 dollars toward heart disease research.
Charlie's next open heart surgery is scheduled for January.
Charlie Skelton is one of just 960 babies a year born with half a heart, according to the CDC. She was born with a birth defect called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome which caused only the right side of her heart to fully develop.
"As a mom you love your kids, and you'd give them your heart if you could," said Joslynn Skelton, Charlie's Mother.
Not many children make it into adulthood with this condition, but to increase the chances many have operations to help circulate blood flow. Charlie had open heart surgery just six days after being born.
Doctors at Children's Hospital of Los Angeles said she would be in the hospital four to six weeks recovering.
But Charlie had other plans.
"She came home 11 days post-op. She came home faster than any other baby and we were just ridiculously proud of her and how well she did. She was kind of crowned the rock star at CHLA," said Skelton.
Rockstars run in the Skelton family. Charlie's sister Makayla won an award for asking people to donate to the American Heart Association on her 11th birthday, instead of giving gifts. She raised $2,500.
"I did this for Charlie because I think that it would be nice for my sister to have a cure so I can walk her to her first day of school, I can teach her how to surf and I can be in her wedding," said Makayla. "And I think not only to find a cure for Charlie but to find a cure for the millions of babies that are out there who have it."
About sixty members of Charlie's family will join her Saturday morning during the heart walk.
So far Charlie's team has raised over $4200 dollars toward heart disease research.
Charlie's next open heart surgery is scheduled for January.