Meet Lauren Herman | Founder & President – Levi’s Legacy

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lauren Herman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lauren, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Our second son, Levi, was born with Heterotaxy (Right Atrial Isomerism), Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous Return (TAPVR), Double Outlet Right Ventricle (DORV), Atrioventricular Canal Defect (AVSD), Atrioventricular Canal Defect, Pulmonary Atresia, Obstruction of the Pulmonary Veins, Bilateral Super Vena Cava, Midline liver, right sided stomach, asplenia and two right shaped lungs. When receiving Levi’s diagnosis at 22wks pregnant, we had never heard of congenital heart defects and knew very little about the world we had just entered. During our journey leading up to Levi’s birth and our 4mth hospital stay with him, we realized there was a giant need for awareness, support and funding. Congenital Heart Defects are the most common and most deadly birth defect affecting 1 in 100 babies born in the US. Heterotaxy is even more unknown than CHDs and has an overall mortality rate of 40.2%. After we lost Levi in August of 2021, we knew his story wasn’t over. Very quickly we started Levi’s Legacy with the mission to help families charge the storm against CHDs. Living life inside the hospital can be incredibly lonely and isolating and these families spend countless weeks in and out of the hospital fighting alongside their heart warrior. We knew that even though Levi’s life with us was much too short, his legacy would continue to make a difference in the heart community. The day Levi took his last breath in my arms, I promised him to never stop charging the storm.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Levi’s Legacy is all because of Levi. We have walked in the shoes that so many people in the heart community are dealing with so we understand what they are going through. We know what it’s like to live in the hospital for four straight months. We know what it’s like to sit there helplessly, begging someone to save your child. We have been there. Because we know this journey, we are able to help in the most impactful ways. In his four short months, Levi taught us so much and truly changed who we are today. Because of Levi, we don’t sweat the small things, always put family first and have a giant new family within the heart community. We will never drop this torch that Levi handed over to us. We will continue to charge the storm each and every day, fighting for better survival rates, more medical advancements and greater awareness.

What we do is so important to our community and we are wildly passionate about it so I would love to share more. For example, we just hosted our 1st Annual Little Hearts Gala in April in Fort Collins and raised $75,000 for medical research at Children’s Hospital Colorado.  We did a toy drive this past November and donated over 400 books and toys to Children’s Hospital.  We deliver monthly care packages for the families in the hospital along with appreciation baskets for the staff.  We offer a college scholarship to heart warriors pursuing higher education and we have a golf tournament at Mariana Butte in Loveland this coming August.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
We wouldn’t be able to charge the storm against CHDs without Levi’s herd. Our support system has truly carried us through our hardest days. We’ve found that the heart community is filled with the most loving, giving and supportive people who are always there to lift you up, offer words of advice or to simple just listen. We can never pass up an opportunity to give credit and recognition to medical staff at Children’s Hospital Colorado. The team at the Heart Institute is truly second to none. They went above and beyond in the care they provided for Levi and continue to provide for all the heart warriors who fill their unit on a daily basis. The support teams, the nurses, the surgeons and everyone in between are fighting daily to beat the odds and give our heart warriors the best possible chance at a full life. They give endlessly, never asking for anything in return. We will never be able to thank them enough for giving us four beautiful months with Levi and for continuing to show up each and every day.

Website: https://thelevilegacy.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelevilegacy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thelevilegacy