Lindon community supports man after heart transplant


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KEY TAKEAWAYS
  • A Lindon community has organized a yard sale to support Jaxson Lunceford.
  • Lunceford, 22, underwent a heart transplant after his condition worsened in January.
  • Local businesses and individuals have contributed to the fundraiser for his recovery.

LINDON — A yard sale stretching across four front yards in Lindon is drawing shoppers from across Utah Valley. Behind the bargains, however, is a community rallying around one family facing a major medical journey.

"Our nephew Jaxson was born with HCM, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. We found that out shortly after he was born," said his aunt, Alexxis Schaefer.

"It's a little hectic. We have been planning this for about six weeks now," said McKenzie Peterson.

The fundraiser supports 22-year-old Jaxson Lunceford. His family has spent years preparing for the possibility of a heart transplant.

His condition worsened earlier this year. His mother, Brittani Lunceford, said things escalated rather fast.

"It wasn't until January that things started going downhill pretty quickly," she said.

That decline led to a pacemaker failure, four emergency open-heart surgeries, and ultimately a lifesaving heart transplant.

"The average heart transplant only lasts 10 years, and he's 22. So we don't know how many times we're going to have to do this," Brittani Lunceford said.

Now, Jaxson is focused on recovery as his family looks ahead.

"They're just the kind of family you'd do anything for," said one volunteer helping at the event.

The Lunceford family has spent years giving back through community yard sales and service projects of their own. Now, they say that same support is coming back to them in a powerful way.

"Yeah, it's been, I can't even express our gratitude," said McKenzie Peterson, holding back tears.

The fundraiser continues to bring in support as neighbors, friends, and even strangers stop by to help.

Some of the community members who helped were:

  • Marie Swift, Impact Communications
  • Summit Crane and Rigging
  • Trailer Rental Load N Go
  • Lotts Originals
  • Pleasant Grove High School football team
  • Tucker Lawn Care
  • Spudly's Donuts
  • Blackhurst Carpets
  • Mosi Oteo, Kaizen Custom Homes, donated a helicopter ride for the silent auction
  • Trevor Pyne, Kaizen Custom Homes, donated a helicopter ride for the silent auction
  • Waffle Love; donating a percentage of purchases when "Heart for Jaxson" is mentioned
  • Steve Schmall, NPC Utah
  • Every individual donor who has contributed to the fundraiser
  • Family and friends are supporting and organizing the event
  • Youth and leaders of the Lindon 8th Ward

At this time, the family is only taking monetary donations at @HeartForJaxson on Venmo.

More information can be found at heartforjaxson.com.


*KSL.com does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.

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The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.

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Tyrese Boone, KSLTyrese Boone
Tyrese Boone is a morning reporter at KSL TV. Born and raised in Beaumont, Texas, he graduated from the University of North Texas with a bachelor's degree in Digital & Print Journalism. He is passionate about community‑focused storytelling.

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