Jimmy Kimmel has sent out a thank you to fans after delivering a heartfelt monologue last night on his show in which he revealed that his newborn baby boy had to undergo heart surgery.
Kimmel started last night’s Jimmy Kimmel Live by saying:
“I have a story to tell about something that happened to our family last week. You know I try not to get emotional, but it was a scary story. And before I go into it, I want you to know it has a happy ending. OK? So when I’m telling this, don’t get too upset. Leave that to me.”
He then, fighting through tears, went on to recount how he and his wife Molly discovered that their baby named Billy was diagnosed with a heart defect called tetralogy of Fallot with pulmonary atresia. “It’s hard to explain,” said Kimmel, “but basically the pulmonary valve was completely blocked, and he has a hole in the wall between the left and right sides of his heart.”
Jimmy’s wife, Molly McNeary, shared a beautiful pic of Jimmy and Billy together writing, “I am thankful to love and be loved by these two brave guys. Both criers.”
I am thankful to love and be loved by these two brave guys. Both criers. pic.twitter.com/NL0C3K3Q4E
— Molly McNearney (@mollymcnearney) May 2, 2017
Kimmel went on to explain that a surgeon, “opened Billy’s chest and fixed one of the two defects in his heart. He went in there with a scalpel and did some kind of magic that I couldn’t even begin to explain. He opened the valve, and the operation was a success. It was the longest three hours of my life.”
Billy Kimmel will need to have another heart surgery in 3 to 6 months, and another procedure when he’s a teenager to replace the valve he has now.
Jimmy sent out his gratitude with a thank you tweet for all the support he’s received:
on behalf of my family, thank you for the lovely and loving tweets about our son Billy and for your donations to https://t.co/HOIUvNt8WE XO
— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) May 2, 2017
As well as a sweet photo of Billy’s older sister pitching in:
sincere thanks for the outpouring of love & support – Dr. Jane is keeping a close ear on Billy, who is very well – XO pic.twitter.com/QgSUminhmg
— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) May 2, 2017
During the monologue Jimmy encouraged everyone to come together to consider the issue of healthcare in America. “Whatever your party, whatever you believe, whoever you support, we need to make sure that the people who are supposed to represent us, people who are meeting about this right now in Washington, understand that very clearly,” Kimmel said adding, “Let’s stop with the nonsense. This isn’t football. There are no teams. We are the team. It’s the United States. Don’t let their partisan squabbles divide us on something every decent person wants. We need to take care of each other.”
