33^rd Annual Miracle Tournament and Celebration Dinner

Treated at UC Davis Children’s Hospital in Sacramento, CA.

Isaac was a healthy baby, but as a toddler, he became lethargic and stopped eating. His low energy and recurring fevers meant multiple trips to the doctor’s office with no answers. When his skin became pale in November 2016, Isaac’s mom advocated for a blood test despite being told it was likely a virus. The staff ran a Complete Blood Count. That afternoon, a nurse practitioner called and told Isaac’s mom to pack a bag and take him to UC Davis Children’s Hospital. The family got the official diagnosis: acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Isaac’s treatment began right away. He spent his second birthday at the hospital and his cancer treatment continued for years at the pediatric infusion center at UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center. Child Life and Creative Arts Therapy programs like music therapy and interactions with the facility dog made the treatment much more tolerable. Today, Isaac remains cancer-free and loves to play football, watch sports and go to the ocean.

Thanks to support from Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, Isaac was able to receive customized cancer treatments so he could live a healthy life in remission.

Treated at Baylor Scott & White McLane Children's Medical Center in Waco, TX.

Identical twins Audrey and Ella were born nine weeks premature, and each weighed two pounds. They spent several weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit at Baylor Scott & White McLane Children’s Hospital. Despite their early arrival, the twins were healthy, and their early interventions were very minimal. However, when they were one year old, a routine doctor’s visit led to a referral to a plastic surgeon at McLane’s Children’s Hospital who found both of their skulls were developing in a triangular shape. This condition, Metopic Craniosynostosis, happens when the bone plates that make up the skull fuse too early and can lead to vision, learning and behavioral issues. Audrey and Ella required a Cranial Vault reconstruction/reconstructive surgery at 17 months old. After their ten-hour procedure, the doctors confirmed that they did not need any additional surgery. Today, the twins are six-years old and are growing and thriving. With their scars hidden beneath their hairline, you would never know of their condition.

Donations to Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals helped to purchase the equipment used for Audrey and Ella’s Craniosynostosis Cranial Vault reconstruction/reconstructive surgery.

Treated at Children's Health in Dallas, TX.

When Jenifer was 20 weeks pregnant, she learned that her baby's, heart was on the right, instead of the left side of his body. This meant he would need surgery shortly after birth to help his blood flow properly. Kaleb's parents chose Children’s Health because not only would they have an expert surgeon, but an entire care team dedicated to their baby’s health. Kaleb was born six weeks early with a heart defect that impacted the way blood flowed through his lungs, meaning his pulmonary veins, which carry blood from the lungs to the heart, weren't working well. Kaleb’s doctors made the difficult decision to try a surgery that had only been performed once, unsuccessfully. Kaleb underwent surgery at 9 days old – placing two stints to keep oxygenated blood flowing throughout his body – and it worked so well that the procedure has become the standard of care for all babies born with this heart defect. He also lives with heterotaxy syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that can affect the development of important systems like the heart and gastrointestinal tract. Living with heterotaxy is difficult, unpredictable and requires long-term monitoring and care. But Kaleb’s care team and family do everything they can to keep him as healthy as possible, so he can focus on regular kid things — like swimming, Legos, Minecraft and learning everything he can about U.S. presidents. Every Halloween, Kaleb dresses up as a different U.S. president. He also loves animals, especially his Goldendoodle. “Her name is Jefferson, after President Thomas Jefferson. And yep, she’s a girl,” Kaleb said.

Thanks to donations to Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, Kaleb had access to an innovative, life-saving heart surgeon and care team.