WYOMING, Ohio — The Wyoming community is rallying around a family who needs their support after an eighth-grader born with a rare heart defect lost his battle.
Brayden Otten, 13, entered Cincinnati Children's Hospital on May 11 for a routine procedure. Unexpected complications caused the Wyoming Middle School student to go into heart failure. He was placed on a transplant list, only to be taken off after getting an infection at the hospital. He died Aug. 5.
Now, the community is gathering for a previously planned Heart Walk and silent auction to celebrate the kid so many described as "special."
"He was just a wonderful brother and son and friend," family friend Denise Litter said. "I think everyone that knows him would say he had a huge smile that would just light up a room."
Though he had his first surgery at just a few days old, those who knew Otten said he lived his life fearlessly.
"He had that zest and love for life,” Litter said. "He played baseball, he played golf, he was in the boy scouts. We went to Gatlinburg, and we went hiking. I mean, he lived a very normal life, and he lived a full life.”
This weekend will be about remembering and celebrating Otten. Proceeds from the walk and auction will go to the family's GoFundMe, which was started to help Otten's parents with medical bills and now funeral arrangements.
“The impact that he had and how brave he was and his unwavering faith in God, that will be the legacy he will leave behind,” family friend Cori Besse said.
Visitation will be held at Wyoming High School on Saturday, Aug. 13 between 11 a.m. and 1:15 p.m. For more details on the Heart Walk, click here. The family's GoFundMe can be found here.
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