When Kennedy was only six years old, she was diagnosed with a heart defect that required open-heart surgery. Her mom brought her to AdventHealth for Children, where doctors guided Kennedy and her family through every step of the surgery. Kennedy was a superstar during the entire procedure and recovered in just a few days. Soon after Kennedy underwent surgery, she connected with an unlikely friend who was going through a similar experience. Her Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Honor, had a heart attack and was taken to AdventHealth for cardiac bypass surgery. When Kennedy returned to school, she ran up to Mrs. Honor with a huge hug. With matching heart scars, Kennedy and Mrs. Honor bonded over their journeys, calling each other their heart-twins. As Kennedy learns more about her heart defect and advocates for others with congenital heart disease, she has a strong role model in Mrs. Honor, who understands what she’s been through. 

Jared was only two years old when he went into acute liver failure. After being admitted to Children’s Hospital Colorado, he was quickly put on a transplant list. With the severity of Jared’s liver failure, he needed a transplant almost immediately, and no liver was available. Fortunately, Jared was a great candidate for a living donor liver transplant. Jared’s older brother, Luis, was a match to donate and stepped up to be a living donor, saving Jared’s life. Since Jared was a toddler, Luis only needed to donate a small portion of his liver, and for both Jared and Luis, their organs regenerated to the correct size over the following few weeks. Within just a few days of surgery, Jared was feeling better and ready to enjoy life as a toddler again. Luis is incredibly grateful to have helped save his brother’s life and would do it again in a heartbeat. 

During a 20-week ultrasound, Georgia was diagnosed with bilateral fibular hemimelia, a rare birth defect where part or all of the fibular bone is missing. When doctors delivered Georgia, they discovered her right fibula, part of her right foot, and her left toe were missing. After much prayer and research, Georgia’s parents brought her to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. The hospital’s pediatric orthopedic surgeon laid out multiple options for the family, ultimately deciding that Syme’s amputation would provide Georgia with the most mobility. At only eleven months old, Georgia successfully underwent the surgery, emerged from her hip spica cast in just two weeks, and was soon fitted for her first prosthesis. Now, at six years old, Georgia is thriving and leading an active life! She loves playing soccer, swimming, tennis, and gymnastics. And her care team left such an impact on her that one of Georgia’s favorite activities is playing doctor!

On a typical summer day at the pool, 15-month-old Caroline was not acting quite like herself. She wasn’t using her right arm correctly and kept falling over. Her parents took her to Wolfson Children’s Hospital Emergency Room, where a brain MRI revealed a complex giant aneurysm, which consisted of balloon-shaped bulges scattered along a blood vessel. A blood clot broke off, causing a stroke, explaining Caroline’s abnormal symptoms at the pool. Doctors at Wolfson Children’s discussed a few treatment options with her family and ultimately determined a craniotomy was the best operation for her case. Two months after Caroline’s initial symptoms, doctors performed the surgery using clips to remodel the blood vessel. The procedure went smoothly, and six days later, Caroline was discharged and feeling like her usual self again. Since surgery, follow-up appointments have shown a minimized risk of another stroke! Today, Caroline is a silly and energetic toddler who loves playing with her older brothers. She has no limitations from her stroke and will continue to visit Wolfson Children’s to monitor her aneurysm.

Isaac, better known as ‘Spike,’ is a top football player, attributing much of his success to the team efforts of Norton Children’s Orthopedics. In middle school, Spike was diagnosed with Osgood-Schlatter disease, a knee pain that most commonly occurs in young athletes going through growth spurts. Doctors at Norton Children’s helped Spike manage the pain, but just as he was approaching high school, he severely fractured his femur with patella dislocation. After the fracture, Spike’s care team performed surgery and provided extensive rehabilitation, allowing him to return to football the following season. Each of these challenges could have derailed his athletic dreams, but his coordinated care team guided him through every step of recovery.  As soon as he stepped back on the field, he excelled as a player and became a team leader. The hospital’s team not only healed his physical injuries but also helped him navigate the emotional struggles associated with such setbacks. Today, Spike is set to continue his football career at North Carolina State University. He continues to visit his team at Norton Children’s to follow up on past injuries and set himself up for a healthy, successful future.

Brooklyn and Pia’s mothers met in a Facebook group for parents of children with congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) and were immediately struck by the similarities between their daughters’ cases. Both were diagnosed with sensorineural hearing loss due to congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) shortly after birth and were treated at Cincinnati Children’s. They grew close and supported one another during their medical journeys. Beyond medical expertise, both families discovered a nurturing community at Cincinnati Children’s, where professionals provided invaluable guidance. They were presented with choices: cochlear implants or embracing sign language. Brooklyn’s family opted for implants, while Pia’s chose both, ensuring they could engage with both hearing and deaf communities. Today, Brooklyn and Pia are doing well with the help of their cochlear implants, which have facilitated their speech development. Their friendship, forged through shared challenges and triumphs, is truly a testament to the care and support they received from their children’s hospital.