Before the sun peeked above the purple farm fields Saturday morning, Shiloh Advent Christian Church’s parking lot was filled with pickup trucks, cars and trailers. The griddles were hot, the coffee was percolating and the stage was being set for a huge breakfast and live auction organized by the Christian Cooking Convoy of Union County. People began pouring through the doors, united by a common purpose: to raise money for baby Lauren and her family.
Lauren is the five-month-old daughter of Joseph and Jessica Haigler, members of Shiloh. She was born in October with a single-ventricle heart defect, meaning only half of her heart functions. Since birth, she has spent most of her life at Levine Children’s Hospital in downtown Charlotte undergoing numerous cardiac procedures.
Lauren went into heart failure and is now supported by a Berlin Heart, a lifesaving device that keeps her heart pumping. She is currently awaiting a heart transplant and will remain hospitalized until a matching heart becomes available. Parents to three girls, Joseph and Jessica travel daily to the hospital from their home in Pageland, S.C., more than an hour away.
In response to this tragedy, the Christian Cooking Convoy, in partnership with Shiloh Advent Christian Church, united their efforts to help the Haiglers with their medical expenses. Banners were placed at local intersections and auction items were posted on Facebook. Once the doors opened at 6 a.m., there was a steady stream of nearly 800 people of all ages.
Local businesses donated tens of thousands of dollars in auction items. The gun raffle alone raised $26,000. The spirit in the room was palpable, and it was one of unity and generosity. As the auctioneer started his calling, people responded by bidding higher and higher and higher. A homemade cake sold for $300, a box of fresh bread sold for $175 and a toy John Deere tractor sold for $1,000, was immediately donated so it could be auctioned again, and sold for an additional $800!
All in all, the breakfast, raffle, live and silent auctions plus online donations, to date have raised $92,450 for the Haiglers. Selfless generosity permeated the fellowship hall and Christ was proclaimed from the pulpit. We give thanks to God for uniting the community around a worthy cause and pray that God will deliver baby Lauren a heart in his perfect time.
Until that day comes, a community continues to pray, give and wait alongside her family.
