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Southern Miss Civitan Club to Hold Fundraiser for Transplant Patient

Thu, 11/11/2010 - 09:48am | By: Van Arnold

Members of the Southern Miss Campus Civitan Club will hold a fundraiser to defray medical expenses for 17-year-old heart transplant patient Jessica Harris Nov. 15-17 in the university Union building lobby.

Harris, of McComb, Miss., was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a rare congenital heart defect in which the left side of the heart is severely underdeveloped. Numerous open heart surgeries stabilized her condition during her early childhood years but the condition has progressively worsened, dictating the need for a transplant.

β€œA new member who joined our club recently brought the idea of helping Jessica to our attention and we all immediately wanted to lend assistance in some way,” said club member Melissa Carpenter, who works in the Student Activities Office at Southern Miss. β€œIt's a very worthwhile cause and Civitans love to give back to the community in any way possible.”

The Southern Miss Campus Civitan Club is a community volunteer service organization that supports individuals with developmental disabilities through various projects.

The Southern Miss club meets the second and fourth Thursday of each month at 8 p.m. in Room 214 of the Thad Cochran Center. Since the fall of 2009, club membership has doubled to 47.

For more information about the Harris fundraiser or the Southern Miss Campus Civitan Club, contact Carpenter at 601.266.4403.