Family Moved to Seattle for Son’s Heart Surgery

The Gardners transitioned to remote roles after their son was born with a critical heart condition in 2025.

Updated on Sept. 28, 2026 in Heart Disease

Gouache-painted illustration of a single paper origami heart resting on a wooden ledge, symbolizing family resilience and medical care. — The Gardner family relocated to Seattle in 2025 to secure critical cardiac care for their son, balancing their careers through remote ministry work. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

Megan and Peter Gardner relocated from South Africa to Seattle in 2025 after their unborn son was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. The couple, who work for Wycliffe Bible Translators, stayed in the United States to ensure Nicholas received necessary medical interventions.

Why it matters

The family moved to facilitate specialized cardiac care for their son, who required immediate surgical intervention upon birth. They transitioned their professional lives to remote ministry work to maintain employment while remaining near the hospital for ongoing monitoring.

Nicholas Gardner required a 65-day hospital stay following the Norwood procedure, which he underwent on July 11, 2025. He later received a second open-heart procedure, the Glenn procedure, in late 2025.

The players

Nicholas Gardner

He is the son of Megan and Peter Gardner who was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome.

Wycliffe Bible Translators

This international organization focuses on Bible translation and linguistic support for diverse communities.

Megan Gardner

She is a member of Wycliffe Bible Translators who relocated to Seattle to seek specialized medical care for her child.

Peter Gardner

He is a Wycliffe Bible Translators staff member who transitioned to remote English instruction while managing his son's cardiac care.

The details

After receiving a prenatal diagnosis of hypoplastic left heart syndrome, the family moved to Seattle so the infant could undergo life-saving care. Peter Gardner continues to coordinate English language instruction for translators globally via Zoom to balance his career with his son's health needs.

January 2018: The Gardners joined Wycliffe Bible Translators full-time.
2019: The family moved to South Africa.
May 20, 2025: Megan Gardner flew to Seattle for medical care.
July 1, 2025: Nicholas Gardner was born.
September 3, 2025: Nicholas was discharged from the hospital.

Health Landscape

The Gardners' journey follows the standard sequence of surgical interventions established by the Norwood procedure clinical protocol for patients born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. This approach represents a multi-stage surgical strategy designed to manage the condition's progression over several years.

Families navigating a prenatal diagnosis of congenital heart disease often face significant logistical challenges, including long-term travel and relocation for specialized hospital access. Managing these care pathways requires close coordination with medical teams to schedule subsequent life-saving procedures.

The takeaway

Navigating a pediatric heart condition often requires balancing intensive medical treatment with the stability of a career and family life. Coordinating remote work allows families to remain near specialized pediatric cardiac centers for the duration of the child's recovery and future surgeries.