After immigrating from Oaxaca, Mexico to the United States, Anayely was excited and eager to start her new life in Wisconsin. She gave birth to her son, Jesus, in LaCrosse and just days after being discharged from the hospital Anayely…
Little Luke and Charlie entered the world four-and-a-half weeks early fighting. They would need to stay in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) until they could maintain their body temperature and eat on their own. As you can imagine, their…
In August 2021, tens of thousands of Afghans fled their homeland with nearly 13,000 settling at Fort McCoy military base in Wisconsin. While processing the traumatic experience of fleeing their country and navigating uncertainty, some families faced an added crisis…
At just 26 weeks pregnant, Melissa flew from Connecticut to Wisconsin to visit her mom. Two days after arriving in Wisconsin, she was admitted to a rural hospital for preeclampsia. Soon after Melissa was transferred to UnityPoint Health Meriter Hospital…
For two months after our daughter came home my phone’s navigational app registered “home” as being the hospital even as I sat on the couch in my living room. Eight months after she was discharged, we returned to that “home,”…
On August 15, our Remi Jean was born in a small town in western Wisconsin. By the next day, she was admitted to the American Family Children’s Hospital in Madison with a heart defect and a down syndrome diagnosis. The…
Bellamay is the youngest of three. Tony and Monica were excited when they found out they would be having another daughter. At just three months old Bella was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) Type 1 which meant she had…
Like many 10-year-olds, Frankie is an energetic kid who loves to dance, swim, ride horses, ice skate and play with her dog. In June 2020, Frankie started complaining about her right cheek hurting and numbness in her mouth. Her parents…
While expecting their first baby, Isaac and Raquel Smith could not know he was going to arrive quite early. Or how much having access to the Ronald McDonald Family Room at SSM Health – St. Mary’s Hospital would mean to…
In September of 2011, Ian was having trouble with everyday things, like tying his shoes. He was tired often and weak. Eventually, local doctors referred him to the specialists at American Family Children’s Hospital in Madison for the underlying diagnosis,…