#IntownGiving
Max’s Coal Oven Pizzeria to Donate Funds to COTA in Honor of Three-Year-Old Heart Transplant Patient
Everett Gray is a local three-year-old boy from Grant Park who recently received a life-saving heart transplant. Volunteers are currently raising funds for the Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA) which will help his family with the thousands of dollars in transplant-related expenses necessary to keep him healthy for the rest of his life.
Local Atlanta restaurant, Max’s Coal Oven Pizzeria, will donate 20 percent of their proceeds June 29 from 5PM – 9PM to benefit COTA in honor of Everett. Max’s is located at 300 Marietta Street NW, Atlanta, 30313
Everett’s Story
Everett Gray was born January 11, 2012 with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, a condition that leaves his heart with only one ventricle and with other underdeveloped valves and arteries. He has had two of three staged open-heart surgeries designed to reconfigure his circulatory system to work with what is essentially half a heart; the third surgery was planned for the summer of 2016. But on March 31 all those plans changed. Literally overnight, Everett’s heart function deteriorated, leaving him in severe heart failure.
Everett had to stay in the cardiac ICU at Egleston for two months, during which time his baby sister Eila was born. His parents had to juggle the responsibilities of a newborn and a three-year-old in the hospital with a failing heart.
On June 4, a heart became available that was a match for Everett, and he underwent transplant surgery. The procedure went smoothly, as did Everett’s recovery, and he was discharged on June 9. Now his family must begin the long road of anti-rejection medications, doctor’s appointments, and therapy to keep him healthy so he can enjoy life as a big brother for the first time.
COTA
A national charity based in Bloomington, Indiana, Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA) is dedicated to organizing and guiding communities in raising funds for transplant-related expenses. COTA’s services are completely free of charge, and 100% of funds generated by COTA community fundraising campaigns are available for transplant-related expenses.
Max’s Coal Oven Pizzeria
Since 2009, Max’s Coal Oven Pizzeria has offered authentic, New York style pizza, classic salads, pastas, Italian sandwiches, signature coal oven wings and freshly made desserts. We have the only genuine coal-burning oven in Georgia, enabling us to serve perfectly crisp pizzas, and create a unique taste and texture that has been a hallmark of New York City pizzerias for more than a century.
Give Today
With the cost of a heart transplant often exceeding $900,000, many families – even those with health insurance – are unable to shoulder the financial burden of such a procedure. If you can’t make it to Max’s on next Monday, you can still contribute to COTA to help cover Everett’s transplant-related expenses which have been estimated to be $100,000 over his lifetime.