A Fundraiser For Baby Luca

Tiffany Viscussi was eating pizza with her fiance and mother while they awaited word from her doctor.

Anxiety is rarely felt by Viscussi. She has a reputation for remaining calm and collected, no matter the situation.

Viscussi didn't think she had reason to worry while she waited for hours inside the doctor's office. She has a mild form of anemia and hoped her son would not contract the same disease.

Even if he did, she thought, it would be OK. It hasn't greatly affected her health and she assumed the same would be the case for her baby, who had been in her womb for 17 weeks.

After the ultrasound results were carefully analyzed, Viscussi's doctor called her in and told her the news. Luca had a heart defect. He would need surgery.

"I thought he was going to die," she recalled. "We weren't even expecting it."

The three of them cried during the drive home from Tampa.

"Oh, it was awful," said her mother, Lisa Laderwager, who works at the same salon as her daughter.

Baby Luca had his first surgery five days after he was born. He remained in the hospital for six weeks before he could come home. At least two more surgeries are required. The family's insurance won't pay for it all.

Laderwager had a customer who suggested a fundraiser at R Beach, a popular restaurant and club in Hernando Beach. She met with the owners and they eagerly agreed to host the event.

The Italian dinner buffet will take place at 7 p.m. Saturday at the restaurant, located at 4054 Shoal Line Blvd. Admission is $12 per person.

Viscussi and Laderwager closely resemble each other. They have the same length of hair - although Viscussi's is darker and includes blonde highlights. They both sport small studs in their noses. They both work as hair stylists at Mirage Hair Studio in Spring Hill.

It is obvious after only a few minutes of seeing them together they have a close relationship.

The other stylists who work there also are a close-knit group. They hovered over Luca when Viscussi brought him to the salon. They cooed and made faces. The baby smiled wide.

The mother held her baby in her lap. He fussed only for a few seconds before Viscussi gently pressed a pacifier into his mouth.

Laderwager eventually came over to give her daughter a break. She held Luca while Viscussi recalled the story.

Luca's shirt covered his feeding tube and the long, vertical scar along his breast bone. His next surgery is only weeks away. Surgeons will insert a stent into his heart.

"He's really happy," the 21-year-old mother said of her son, who waved his hands in the air and giggled. "He likes to play."

Aside from his pale skin and frequent sleepiness, Luca is a perfectly normal 4-month-old baby, Viscussi said.

He is bottle fed and he usually sleeps for eight hours straight - although Wednesday night he kept his mother awake for most of the morning. She has to make sure he does not roll over and sleep on his stomach. It could shift his feeding tube.

The family hopes the tube can be removed for good after his forthcoming surgery.

Viscussi is taking a leave of absence from her job at Mirage. Her fiance previously worked for the Checkers in Spring Hill, which closed days after his son was born.

He was laid off from his ensuing job and is looking for more work, Viscussi said. In the meantime, he makes sure he remains helpful around the house. He spent the day fixing the car.

The stress, along with the medical bills, is mounting.

Insurance pays for a lot of the surgery costs, but the family needs more.

The upcoming fundraiser will go a long way toward putting them in the black, Viscussi said.

"I really want to thank everyone for their help and support," she said.

For more information about Saturday's dinner, call R Beach at 352-592-5556.