Aria Duran is ten years old and is in fifth grade at Alta Vista Elementary School in Questa. She lives with her mom, Alyssah, her dad, Jose, and 6-year-old brother Noah. Her parents describe her as “sweet, feisty, and friendly.”
When Aria was four years old, she was at her annual hematology appointment when the doctor discovered a heart murmur. Aria is a symptomatic carrier for hemophilia VIII, a rare condition in which the blood doesn’t clot in the typical way when a person bleeds. The hematologist recommended they go see the cardiologist. It wasn’t long before Aria was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a disease in which the heart muscle becomes thickened, which makes it harder for the heart to pump blood. Jose and Alyssah’s understanding was that at some point in Aria’s future she would need a heart transplant.
Aria kept up with her routine checkups and continued living with her condition. It wasn’t until the second grade when her symptoms started progressing. “Her blood pressure was up and she was often tired and short of breath,” Alyssah says. At this time, Aria changed doctors and it was like turning over a new leaf. After six months and another checkup, Dr. Grenier referred her to Colorado Children’s Hospital in Denver. “Our doctor felt that Aria’s condition was serious enough to be seen by specialists for HCM in children. She did everything she could to get us into the Children’s Hospital in Denver. Our doctor was amazing,” both Alyssah and Jose express.
It was 2021, and after rounds and rounds of going back and forth to Denver and a plethora of doctors later, Aria found a team of doctors that helped her and her parents fully understand her condition. Aria’s followup appointments were initially every six months and then moved to once a year. Aria was living a seemingly normal life with HCM. It wasn’t until summer 2024 that things started to take a turn again: she started having a harder time breathing during sports and needed to sit down more than usual.
Right before the 2024 school year started, Aria had her routine checkup. Her parents, Jose and Alyssah, knew this appointment was different. After a straightforward conversation with Aria’s doctor, Jose and Alyssah learned that since Aria was on the highest dose of medication she could tolerate, the next step to treat Aria’s HCM was to intervene surgically. Surgery for HCM in children is not common and hopes of having surgery in the near future seemed unlikely, but with the tenacity of Aria’s doctor, she was scheduled for open heart surgery on November 21. On November 25, Aria was scheduled for a follow-up procedure to insert a defibrillator to address irregular arrhythmias. Aria’s blood clotting disorder, hemophilia, complicates the procedure but thankfully, her surgery was a success. Aria and her family are expected to be in Denver for up to four weeks post-surgery.
Jose and Alyssah are the kind of parents that will ask questions until they fully understand something, and Aria’s HCM condition and surgery specifics are no different. “It’s been rough,” says Alyssah. “The thing that gets me through is realizing as parents we don’t have a choice, we have to do it for our kids. Our faith, the support from the community, as well as the belief that it’s gonna be okay gets me through.” Jose says “the thing that keeps me going is the overall outcome that she’ll be able to be a normal kid and do all the things that she hasn’t been able to do.”
Alyssah’s mom, Amanda Leon, wanted to help ease the financial impact this would have on their family, so she started a GoFundMe account to help with expenses. The account quickly grew and by the next morning Aria was halfway to her goal. “I was overwhelmed and just super grateful for all of the support. At first we were asking ourselves ‘how are we gonna get through this,’ ” says Alyssah. Some community members really stepped up and took charge. Specifically, Jennifer Vialpando, a close friend. Vialpando held a raffle for her artwork during Oktoberfest and raised $1,800 all on her own for Aria. Vialpando’s sister Rosie Turpin, of Rosie’s Smokehouse, sold cinnamon rolls on a Sunday and had all proceeds go to Aria. Turpin also keeps a donation jar at her restaurant for Aria. Many other community members have stepped up and asked how they can help.
This comes as no surprise as our little town is eager to help those in need. Jose and Alyssah officially moved back to Questa in 2022 due to Aria’s health condition, and needing help from family members. Since they arrived, they have been involved with community activities and volunteering their time as coaches in youth sports. “Seeing all of the support is mind-blowing. Look at all of these people who are willing to help our family and have such good things to say about Ari. We’re looking forward to watching her live a long and healthy life and feel that Questa is exactly where we’re supposed to be,” says Alyssah. When asked how all of the support from the community makes her feel, Aria says, “Loved, it makes me feel loved.” Jose and Alyssah remain steadfast through it all and are thankful for all of the community support surrounding Aria. They ask that prayers continue for their daughter.
