This memorial website was created in the memory of our loved one, Daniel Brooks who was born in Texas on January 31, 2002 and passed away on July 31, 2002 . We will remember him forever. I am going to share something that is so important to me and I wanted to get the information out to all of you and that way you can share information On CHD it is so important to me. I Deciate this to my handsome little boy in his Memory.

      In Memory of Daniel Lee Brooks
        January 31,2002 wings July 31,2002

People say, " Oh, it won't happen to me." But it can. It happened to my family. I have two handsome boys. One is ten years old with a healthy heart. The other, our baby boy Daniel was born with a heart defect called Hypoplastic Left heart Syndrome. Daniel had two out of the three required open heart surgeries to treat his defect. He was home only three weeks after undergoing his first surgery at Children's Medical Center of Dallas  until he got so sick and had to return to the hositpal. After Daniel became healthy enough he was return to Dallas for his second surgery. Daniel fought for his short life ad we fought with him but his heart was too badly damaged to attempt any further repairs. Daniel died peacefully on a warm Wednesday evening in our arms. He reminded me of Tigger (from Winnie the Pooh) who was always bouncing back. We had six wonderful months with Daniel until he went to heaven. It is important for me to make people, particularly medical personnel, aware of Congenital Heart Defects so they can recognize the signs of these heart defects and how they can help families understand and deal with their child's illness.

About 40,000 children a year are born with a Congenital Heart Defect in the United States. One out of every one hundred births result in some form of Congenital Heart Defects. One in twenty of those is fatal. Congenital Heart Defects are the number one cause of deaths for children less than one year old. There are approximately two million Americans alive today with heart defects. Through ongoing research thirty five different defects have been identified. Nearly twice as many children die each year from heart defects than die of all forms of childhood cancer combined. Yet, there are five times more research dollars expended for childhood cancers research than for Congenital Heart Disease.

What can you do? Get good prenatal care. Early diagnosis is critical. Make sure when you have an ultrasound they look at all four chambers of the heart, the heart itself and the great vessels. Ask, to make sure they see everything involving the heart. If you have history of Congenital Heart Disease, have your children screened by a cardiologist. Become an organ donor and make your family aware of your wishes. Become a blood donor, donate money to fund research into Congenital Heart Disease.

There are NO known causes for Congenital Heart Defects. " They literally just happen". For more information please call American Heart Association at 1-800-677-5481. Making  a monetary donation will enable the researchers to find a solution to the proble,. If you have internet access please feel free to visit their website at www.americanheart.org or www.chdnow.com to read more stories about Congenital Heart Defects...

Alittle about Daniel Lee
Daniel was a very handsome little guy. I miss him every day. As a grieving mom you will never forget them at all. By letting go doesn't mean that you will forget them believe me it has been four years since my loss and I can remember every ounce of Daniel. From the biggest blue eyes he had, to the red hair he ended up with. His handsome smile, the way he cooed, how hard he fought, how brave and strong he was. I remember the way he flirted with the nurses, the way he hold my finger. The way he looked into my eyes with those deep blue eyes. Time goes by but still I remember Daniel lee. Memories is what will keep me going and what will help me get through each and every day.

Daniel taught us how to fight, that we will make it through it just takes time to heal. I believe all of our Angels teaches us things when they are here and still do so now. Daniel taught me to be brave and strong, to never give up keep on fighting just like he did. To have HOPE, to have FAITH and to HANG onto them both because GOD is what will get me through my grief...
I miss him so much but I know Daniel is with us all. God bless.