PENN TWP— Lori Wilson loves sitting in the living room and watching her 5-year-old son T.J. play Transformers with his cousin and best friend Kaine McFarland, 6.

While T.J. runs around trying to "save the world" from imaginary evildoers, Lori remembers when his future wasn't so certain.

On July 17, 2007, 20-month-old T.J. went into cardiac arrest and had a Berlin Heart, a type of artificial heart, put in. It normally has a life span of 10 to 20 years.

Now, T.J.'s aunt Roxanne McFarland, 33, is planning to raise money for the eventual replacement.

On Nov. 8 in Richmond, Va., McFarland plans to run a marathon in an effort to raise $1,000 for his transplant fund.

A cross-country and track runner while in college at Clarion (Pa.) University, McFarland previously ran a 5K at Cook's Forrest with a team of around 20 people that raised $10,000 for her nephew.

"I've debated doing this and spent most of the summer getting in shape for it," McFarland said. "You know you have to motivate yourself to get our there and run and not just sit back on the couch."

She has never ran a marathon before.

"I've been running 45 to 50 miles a week to get ready," McFarland said. "It's tough because your mind starts to wonder why you're doing this, but I think of what T.J.'s been through and I feel better."

T.J's problem started on June 12, 2007, when Lori and her husband, Randy, laid T.J. down to bed.

For a boy that never had health issues before, something was wrong that night.

T.J. was fussy and had problems with diarrhea and vomiting.

His parents decided to take him to Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh, and out of their concern for their son, they got lost on the way.

After arriving, they were taken to the emergency room, where T.J. went limp in Lori's arms.

"It was so surreal," Lori said. "I kept telling myself that it wasn't my son, that my son was healthy. I can't explain what was going on."

T.J. was diagnosed with Viral Myocarditis, a virus that attacks the heart.

From June 12 to July 17, T.J. had to wait on a transplant.

His family was faced with over $1 million dollar in medical bills. Lori said her insurance covered $300,000 and Medicaid covered the rest.

"The whole process was tough," Lori said.

"When he was on the respirator, he had to be unconscious because kids will try and pull out the tubes. It's dangerous and the amount of drugs to keep him out, we were worried."

T.J. survived, but there were complications. In January of 2008, he was back in the hospital for another three months because of complications from the transplant.

"He was never able to get a full night of sleep," Lori said. "He had 13 prescriptions and had to take 20 doses of medicine a day."

The family current has nearly $75,000 in a Children's Organ Transplant Association account that can only be used for medical expenses.

Lori said that the current amount to get someone's name on the waiting list for a transplant is $300,000.

"It may sound cruel, but the hospitals have to pick and choose who gets on the list, there aren't enough organs to go around," Lori said. "Healthier patients and the best candidates are chosen first."

Anyone interested in donating can go to www.cota.org and make a donation to T.J.'s account.