The scariest moment of Dennis and Katie Engles’ lives could help save the life of someone else.
Shortly after the birth of their baby boy in 2022, doctors detected a congenital heart defect in the infant. Three years later, their newborn daughter received the same diagnosis.
“There's not really words that can describe the feelings that you're having,” Dennis said this week, reflecting on the moments that terrified — and now inspire — the Scranton family.
The couple and their children — both of whom have undergone successful heart surgeries — delivered an AED machine to a fourth youth sports league last week. On Saturday, 3-year-old Tate, now an energetic boy who loves to play, will lead the American Heart Association Northeast PA Heart Walk at PNC Field.
“There's a strong desire to want to be involved and to help other families that we know are going to be experiencing the same thing,” Dennis said.
A surprise diagnosis
Prenatal care never detected that Tate had tetralogy of Fallot, a condition in which a baby has four abnormalities in the heart, making it difficult to get enough oxygen throughout the body.
Tate’s Apgar score — a standardized assessment right after birth that looks at breathing, heart rate and other health indicators — warranted further testing.
Less than 24 hours after her C-section in Scranton, Katie convinced the doctors to discharge her so she could follow her newborn to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Several months later, Tate underwent successful open heart surgery to repair his heart.
When the couple added Poppy to the family late last year, they learned in the hospital that she had the heart defect as well. Poppy, now 5 months, was in heart failure before having surgery in March.
At their home in the city’s Green Ridge section this week, Tate played on the floor and bounced from cushion to cushion on the coach. Poppy sat in her mother’s arms. Earlier in the day, both kids had “perfect” cardiologist appointments. The siblings are expected to live normal lives without physical restrictions.
About 1 in 2,041 babies in the United States are born with tetralogy of Fallot each year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There is no determined genetic cause, and doctors don’t know why both of the Engles children have it.
Connecting families
After first receiving Tate’s diagnosis, the Engles family didn’t know where to turn for support. They connected with Scranton-based Jack of Hearts PA, created by Donny and Lisa Scarfo, whose twin sons Jack and Nathan were born in 2008. Doctors diagnosed Jack with the same defect as the Engles’ babies.
Lisa wanted to connect families to resources, and to each other.
“A heart family is something you didn't want to be a part of, but you couldn't imagine your life without,” Katie said.
Today, the Scarfo twins are healthy 18-year-old high school juniors. And Lisa works as a cardiac sonographer for both Geisinger and CHOP — a career inspired by her family’s journey and with a desire to help more families.
“Having that network of Jack of Hearts families, to be able to connect those people even further is just something we're so glad to have,” she said.
Impact at the ballpark
The Engles family’s efforts could now save someone in a dugout or in the bleachers.
A “Toppings for Tate” pizza fundraiser each year and dress-down days in the Scranton School District, where Dennis works as an administrator, help purchase automated external defibrillator (AED) machines — portable, life-saving devices used to treat sudden cardiac arrest.
Working with Jack of Hearts, they’ve donated the devices to the Dunmore Missy League and Little Leagues in Minooka and Green Ridge.
“We want to help families that have gone through this as much as Jack of Hearts helped us,” Dennis said.
Last week, between a softball double-header at Abington Heights High School, the family presented an AED to players and board members of the Abington Area Girls Softball League.
Coaches and community members will receive training on how to use the device next week.
“Not only is it there for the kids, but it's there for grandma or grandpa, if they're sitting on the sidelines too,” Katie said.
Walk with the 'heart family'
On Saturday, Tate will serve as the heart walk’s “Heart Hero.” He’ll lead the walk at PNC Field. He’ll be joined by pediatric cardiologist Karen Lurito, nurses who cared for him in the NICU and dozens of family members.
Some of Tate’s young friends will be there too. They look forward to what they call the “Valentine's Day walk.”
Katie and Dennis will walk with the “heart family” they never expected to have — and one they can’t imagine life without.
“You’re not alone,” she said.
