Holyoke school hosts fundraiser after classmate suffers cardiac arrest

HOLYOKE, MA (WGGB/WSHM) - A local middle school student who collapsed two weeks ago after suffering cardiac arrest was expected back in school on Monday, but had to be taken to the emergency room again over the weekend.

Students at Mater Dolorosa School in Holyoke were hoping to see their classmate and friend, Nevaeh Vieira, back in the hallways again on Monday.

Vieira collapsed two Sundays ago after complaining of chest pains to her mother. She suffered cardiac arrest twice, and a stroke, and was placed in a medically induced coma.

After days in the hospital and multiple tests, it was determined a severe asthma attack caused the cardiac episode. She was awake and on the mend this past weekend when she was sent home. Her mother told Western Mass News that she was so excited to be home, but on Sunday, Vieira had to go back to the hospital after fainting three times. Her doctors determined she had blood clots in her lungs. Therefore, Vieira is recovering once again in the hospital, but she’s still top of mind for her school community.

“We’re keeping Nevaeh and her family in our prayers. She knows we are pulling for her,” said Mater Dolorosa School Principal Mary Fedora.

The school planned to hold a ‘dress down’ day fundraiser for her return on Monday.

“We’ve been waiting to do something special when she finally returned to school, so over the weekend, I reached out to all the families and teachers to announce a ‘dress down’ for a dollar,” Fedora explained.

Although Vieira couldn’t make it to class, they still raised money in her honor. Students could pay a dollar or more to ditch their school uniform for the day. All the money raised will go to Vieira’s GoFundMe page, which will help her family with medical expenses. They also plan to continue this fundraiser on Tuesday.

“This is something nice that the kids wanted to do for her and we’re actually doing another one tomorrow, just in case there were some students that were absent today because of the weather,” Fedora noted.

If you’d still like to help out this family, you can CLICK HERE for more information on the GoFundMe page.

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