OK Child With Heart Condition Receives Dream Trip To Hawaii

A 5-year-old boy with an irreversible heart condition is getting a dream come true thanks to a group of people from Green Country.

Kenton Grego has half a heart and has had three open-heart surgeries before his fourth birthday, but his parents said his health issues have never stopped him from being a normal kid.

“He was born with Hypoplastic left heart syndrome, which means the left part of his heart did not form,” said Kenton’s mother, Tina Grego.

The Gregos found out about Kenton’s heart condition when Tina was 19 weeks pregnant. They said since he was born, Kenton has had three open heart surgeries, and every time, the little fighter proved he’s a survivor.

“It’s difficult to hand your baby over to a surgeon and not know if you are going to get him back. That’s very difficult, and it was a very real possibility all three times,” Tina said.

She said Kenton’s hospital stays and procedures never kept him down for long, and they have done everything they can to keep his life as normal as possible.

“He is really strong, and he has done a fantastic job,” Tina said. “We have actually had a very easy road compared to a lot of our friends.

Before the summer started, Miller Swim School gave away a free two-week swim class to a couple lucky kids, and Kenton was one of the winners.

Once his mom told them Kenton was with Make A Wish and has always wanted to swim in the blue waters of Hawaii, the school started planning.

“How neat would that be? He wants to go to Hawaii and we want to teach him how to swim,” said Sarah Clavin with Miller Swim School.

Thursday, Kenton got his big surprise.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah," he exclaimed. "Get dirty in the sand. Get sandy."

Kenton's parents said the toddler’s heart is doing great. They said the goal is to get Kenton to adulthood before he needs a new heart.