Dane O’Connor ate lunch with the Rotary International lunch yesterday, a distinguished guest dining on chicken noodle soup, steak tips and chocolate cake.
Yet after arriving on Friday from Jamaica to undergo heart surgery in Boston, the lanky 12-year-old O’Connor already misses the chicken and yams of home.
O’Connor goes into Massachusetts General Hospital for Children today for a heart catheterization, when a tube is inserted through the groin and into the heart. He’ll return to Westwood on Thursday and stay with the Bean family on Clapboardtree Street through the weekend. On Monday, O’Connor returns to the hospital for surgery to replace a heart valve.
With the surgery finished, O’Connor said, ‘‘I want to swim in the pool and go back to school.’’
In Mandeville, Jamaica, O’Connor lives on a farm with his parents, older sister and two younger brothers. He visited the United States when he was a 2-year-old to be a patient at a New Jersey hospital, where he had his first heart surgery.
In the years since, O’Connor has grown into a tall, quiet pre-teen with a warming smile. At the same time, his heart has grown weaker, so that he tires easily. Even a walk to school would leave O’Connor exhausted, and poor circulation causes swelling problems. He has not attended school in three years. His favorite subject is math.
O’Connor comes to the United States through the Gift of Life New England, a nonprofit organization that helps provide open-heart surgery for needy children throughout the world.
After feeling sick last year, the boy went to his doctor and learned that his heart was failing. Dr. Williams Foster recommended that O’Connor and his mother, Nadine Powell, contact Gift of Life.
The organization began more than 30 years ago in New York as a Rotary initiative. In Westwood, Rotary member and Fensview Drive resident Barry Friedman is the president of Gift of Life New England. His wife, Barbara Friedman, is the treasurer.
Last year the Rotary raised half of the $5,000 needed to bring a child to the United States for surgery. The hospital donates the cost for doctors and surgery.
At a recent Rotary meeting, Friedman asked if any members would volunteer to host O’Connor and Powell, and Chuck Bean stepped up.
O’Connor could stay in Westwood for several weeks after his surgery, depending on the speed of recovery.
‘‘You’re saving a life. Kids can count their life in years, not months. It’s amazing,’’ Friedman said.
In its seven years, Gift of Life New England has brought 45 children to the Boston area for surgery from countries including Mexico, Philippines and the Dominican Republic. Several years ago a 14-year-old Russian girl stayed with Mike Beaumont, another Westwood Rotarian.
O’Connor said he is not nervous heading into the surgery. His mother admitted that she is scared, but said, ‘‘Thanks to Dr. Williams Foster. Thanks to Mr. Barry (Friedman) and his crew, Gift of Life, to help us come to America so Dane can have his surgery done. Thanks to Mr. Bean and his family for accommodating us while in Boston.’’
Donations to Gift of Life New England can be sent to 145 Fensview Drive, Westwood, Mass. 02090.
Daily News staff writer Greg Duggan can be reached at 781-433-8355 or gduggan@cnc.com.
