My TSRHC Story

Last week, I sent out cards to all my friends and family asking them to sponsor me in my marathon and make a donation to TSRHC. I am happy to report that 3 friends have already donated a total of $145 to the hospital. My goal is raise $2,500 for the hospital by December 14, 2008, the date of the marathon.

I am a former patient of the hospital, and I decided to make the White Rock Marathon my first marathon because it benefits TSRHC. Although I do not walk around telling my TSRHC story to everyone, I have always been truly passionate about the place. I became a patient at the hospital after I was born with the bones in the lower part of my right leg bowed upward so that my toes touched my knee. My parents searched the country for the best doctors to help correct the problem. Over and over again were told to go to TSRHC. My mom still has notebooks of letters she sent to and received from doctors all over the country.

My parents applied, and I was accepted as a patient. As an infant, I had my first surgery to correct the problems with my right leg, and I spent several months in a full-leg cast, followed by some time in leg braces. After recovering from the surgery, I learned to walk and lived a normal life. However, it was clear that a second surgery would be required because my right leg was significantly shorter than my left. In the meantime, I played sports and did everything the other kids my age were doing. My family and I made regular visits the hospital in Dallas, where my doctors monitored my growth.

Following my 6th grade year, I played in a basketball tournament, and then my family travelled to Dallas so that I could have my second surgery. I had this surgery on my left leg; the doctors fused the growth plates so that my left leg would stop growing, but my right leg would continue to grow. This helped to reduce the length discrepancy in my legs. The surgery was successful, and after recovering, I returned to school and sports. I continued to visit the hospital until I was released as a patient at the age of 18. However, the hospital's generosity did not stop there. TSHRC also awarded me an academic scholarship that helped me pay for my undergraduate education at Texas A&M University.

TSRHC provides first-class medical care with some of the best physicians and surgeons in the country. Amazingly, they provide all of this free of charge, regardless of a patient's ability to pay. The hospital also goes above and beyond, helping former patients pay for higher education. These major undertakings cannot be accomplished without charitable donations and fundraisers such as the White Rock Marathon.

Being from Amarillo, I am concerned that people do not know much about the hospital and are hesitant about donating to an out-of-town charity. However, I lived in Amarillo when I was a patient. The hospital's mission is to provide these services to Texas children, not just those from the Dallas metroplex. The services of TSRHC reach well beyond the metroplex. To learn more about the hospital, its services and its mission, visit http://www.tsrhc.org/.