Genesee Sun - Lighting the Region

One little girl is a big inspiration

On (Good Friday) , April 6, 2012 (also known as “Day 25) , doctors at Strong Memorial Hospital told the family of 7 month old McKenzie Morgan Whipple that the time had come to say goodbye. Little McKenzie had undergone a second surgery called a bilateral/bidirectional glen. It is where they redirect her blood flow to her lungs. McKenzie is battling a disease called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. McKenzie was on the ECMO machine.

Taken from the family Caring Bridge Site :
The surgeon and NP came in and said "She has been de-stating into the 20's.. She has a 50/50 shot buy there is a significant chance she will not be here tomorrow"... I looked at the tears welling up in both of their eyes.. "You can come back and see her"...

Adam and I came in to see her swollen right back up, nurses and doctors rushing around like fine machinery, one pushing blood thru a syringe while another sucking out junk in her breathing tube.. I sat beside her and just cried.. Within seconds I saw blood pouring out of everywhere, her linens soaked, all of the blankets they put on top of the other blood soaked blankets now had become just as saturated.. Gauze after gauze being changed to try to soak up just around her neck... I couldn't do anything but hold her hand and kiss her head... They brought our surgeons partner up to try to stop the bleeding and kicked us out of the room again.. 20 minutes later they said they were able to stop the bleeding but she was not doing well with her oxygen saturations.. As they led me back to her room, the NP, Gina, whispered "She's not going to make it... I'm so sorry, you need to say goodbye".. I dropped when I rounded the corner and saw her all cleaned up in clean linen, no blood stains all over the bed and herself... She just looked like a sleeping baby... I just remember screaming "I can't do this! I can NOT do this!"... The NP pulled me to her bedside and I grabbed her hand.. They asked if I wanted to hold her which they never do with an open chest (covered) or breathing tube unless there is no hope.... They moved furniture around so I could hold her... I sat down as a huge team of people wrapped her in what seemed like 100 blankets And placed her in my arms.. It's been 26 days since I've held my daughter and it was to tell her goodbye forever....

I begged the doctor to tell me what to do and she said she really felt the McKenzie was going to pass very soon and that if it were her, she would most likely take her off the ventilator and have her go peacefully in her Mothers arms where she belonged... Adam and I looked at each other and decided they were probably right...

A woman from Child Life came in and asked if we wanted to do hand prints, foot prints and cut a lock of her hair... They set a keepsake box off to the side to place her memorables in... Pictures of us holding her for the last time were being taken, everyone was giving her kisses on the head to say their goodbyes......
Moments before we turned the vent off, we looked up and her oxygen level was at 60...... The doctors were amazed and said we might want to hold off on pulling the vent just yet.. So we waited...... We saw her stats hang out around 60-65 and decided she had other plans, God had other plans and we should not be playing God.. We should not be the ones to say "Call it".... SHE will tell us when she has had enough...

I slept with her overnight and her saturation hovered around 75 for a bit!... This child is a miracle.. There's no other words for it!,.. Her nurse said that when a doctor says "it's time"... They've never been wrong.... She made them wrong 6 times yesterday..

May 23, 2012 , also known as Day 72. McKenzie has been given some hurdles to get over and she has come through with flying colors ….. a few minor bumps in the road, but nothing short of miraculous. Again the family was told, it was time to remove McKenzie from the breathing tube. Yes, McKenzie, it’s time. This time, it’s time to breath on your own. To be held by your family and get the tube out of your mouth and the tape off your beautiful little face. Time to get one step closer to going home.

As of now, McKenzie is still amazing people, both in and out of the medical field. She continues to draw people from all over the world to Caring Bridge and Facebook to check her progress. She is currently in her own room in the hospital and rumors of the possibility of going home in a few weeks.

There are still many more hurdles McKenzie and her family will be facing. But this little girl and her family continue to look to God and He continues to answer their prayers and the prayers of thousands throughout the world.

Please continue to pray for this family. Here is a link to her Caring Bridge Site ….. you will be checking it as much as the rest of us who have been impacted by McKenzie Morgan and her family. http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/mckenziemorgan