Our daughter Mallory has been through a lot in her short 4 years of life. Mallory was born on June 19, 2008 at 25 weeks, weighing 1 lb. 9 oz. and with a length 12 1/2 in. When she was a month old, Mallory became very ill and was diagnosed with E-Coli Sepsis and possible Meningitis. Mallory then began having a seizure which lasted nearly 2 days. Doctors administered three different seizure medicati
ons to get the seizure under control. She was then diagnosed with Hydrocephalus. Doctors began to suggest that we remove Mallory from her ventilator and let her pass on. We refused, standing strong with God, and His promise that she would not only survive but grow to live the life HE had planned for her. Mallory made the progress that God had promised, being discharged from the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in October 2008. We met with Dr. John Collins, a neurosurgeon specializing in Hydrocephalus, at WVU Children's Hospital in January 2009. Mallory had her 1st shunt surgery with Dr. Collins that very month. Her recovery was remarkable. We later found out that Mallory needed a second shunt in another location of her skull to further relieve the Hydrocephalus. After her second shunt surgery in May 2009, Mallory celebrated her first birthday that June. In the years following her first birthday, Mallory’s progress was astounding. The Hydrocephalus was completely under control, allowing Mallory to grow and lead a life comparable to any other healthy young child. Then in June 2012, a yearly check up revealed that Mallory would require yet another surgery to repair a problem with the second shunt. This type of problem normally causes the patient to become very ill and could even result in death. However, Dr. Collins was incredulous that Mallory was her usual happy-go-lucky self with no signs of sickness -- proof that God is always watching over us! The surgery took place on July 3, 2012 but it was not over yet. On July 10, Mallory was readmitted to the children’s hospital for 2 more days to treat minor complications from the shunt surgery. During this stay, Mallory was introduced to the Toy/Prize Box, a huge wooden toy box filled with toys and treats for the children admitted to the hospital. Once the children are well enough, they are allowed to visit the box and choose any toy they like to keep as their very own. This box was an immeasurable source of comfort, hope and peace to both Mallory and us. During her visits to the box she smiled and played with no worries of any upcoming tests, pokes, owies or scans, which in turn relieved our worries and stress over the same things. I noticed the big box getting pretty empty, and felt God’s familiar tug on my heart. This is where Mallory’s Blessing Box began to take root in my heart and the toy drive began. Now we are collecting NEW small- and medium-sized toys. All toys MUST be NEW by request of the PICU Floor. We are accepting donations til Sept. 3. We will be delivering the Toys to WVU Children's Hospital on Sept. 6. We have 2 drop off locations: State Farm Insurance Agencies in Chapmanville and Logan, WV. We can also meet in person if need be. Please feel free to message Tara on here or call 304-946-1474. Here are some examples of toys that can be donated: Hot Wheels Cars, Small or Medium trucks/cars, small or medium dolls, Barbie Dolls, Play Doh, Coloring books with crayons, Story Books, Bouncy Balls, small or medium stuffed animals, play jewelry, play tiaras, action figures, small games, toy phones/keys, etch a sketch, boy and girl hats, girly hair accessories. Just think about what you would find in a normal toy box for ages starting at infant/toddler on up. Patients in the PICU range from infants to teens. Items on the list are not the only things you can donate, just ideas. Please feel free to donate whatever is on your heart to give. Thank you so much from Mallory and our family, and from the countless number of children and parents whose lives you’ll touch through your donations!
