ALEXANDER JACK SCHINDLER - 'JAX'

Last June my husband Jonathan and I attended the first Kellner Family Pediatric Liver Disease fundraiser, while our son Alexander Jack Schindler, “Jax” as we call him, was awaiting a liver transplant.

Our little boy was born with bilary atresia, a rare disease that causes cirrhosis of the liver. We were told that he would eventually need a liver transplant to live. At 6 weeks of age, Jax underwent an operation to delay the imminent damage to his liver.  After the failure of this operation, he was put on the donor list. Feeding only with the help of a feeding tube, our son’s health was deteriorating.

Just 8 months ago, we were blessed to receive a donated organ and Jax received his life saving transplant at Mt. Sinai Hospital on May 29th, 2005. Dr. Sukru Emre performed the surgery.

Our son is named after his grandfather, a Rabbi, who taught that a person’s body might depart from this earth, but their soul will never die when their memory lives in the hearts of others. We know very little about the young man who donated the liver that saved our son, other then that his beautiful gifts have touched many, and that he truly does live on in our hearts and in our beautiful child who is now a healthy and flourishing one-year-old boy. If you are not already an organ donor, please reconsider and give the gift of life.

We cannot say enough about the Pediatric Liver Team at Mt. Sinai Hospital. Our journey started in the NICU under the tender guidance of Dr. Benjamin Shneider. His loving care, support and knowledge was a calming and steadying influence for us during a most difficult time.

Dr. Sukru Emre soon entered our lives and we will never forget his caring way and the confidence it had in reassuring us that it may be a road ahead, but things would turn out ok. Dr. Emre’s gift is not only the remarkable work he performs on our children in the operating room, but it is also that he cares so very much for each and every one of his patients and their families.

The dedication of the members of the Pediatric Liver Team has been clearly evident in every caring step taken through the difficult journey of healing a child with liver disease.

Please help the Kellner Family to achieve their goals and support The Pediatric Liver Disease Foundation. Help us to give back to the life saving program that saved our sons lives and that these two incredible doctors are dedicated to growing and improving each and every day.

Thank you and God Bless,

The Schindler Family
Heather, Jonathan and Jax!