Ace's Story
At
about four and a half months into her second pregnancy, my daughter
learned via ultrasound that the child she was carrying had a cleft lip.
It was devastating. No one knew what to say or do to help.
I
am an educator and wanted to know all that I could possibly learn about
craniofacial deformities. I searched the internet for information
and organizations for support. A very timely article was
printed in the Louisville Courier-Journal newspaper the following
week, with information about the local group organizing to help
families of cleft patients. I emailed the
faceforward@aol.com
address,
giving my personal information and asking for any help I could get.
Mary
Ann Watkins emailed back and offered to meet with anyone in our family.
We exchanged telephone numbers and spoke on the phone. She planned
to show us before and after pictures of group members and let us
meet her daughter.
We
began attending the meetings, listening to the stories of others and
gaining respect for the courage and strength of these families. We
were able to learn so much about procedures and treatments from
the wonderful guest speakers and professionals. We knew
immediately from the kindnesses and warm acceptance of this group
that our family had found a life-long connection. We met folks
who knew how to help us deal with things we knew nothing about.
Throughout the remaining months of the pregnancy, doctors were
unable to identify whether the palate was involved. Members of
Face Forward gave us answers to questions we had but didn't
know to ask.
By the time our baby came, we felt prepared. We knew what would happen at the birth and were hopeful for the months approaching his surgery. Today at seven months, our baby boy born with a unilateral cleft lip, is unconditionally beautiful, healthy and happy. Without the support, expertise and friendships of the folks at Face Forward, our experiences would have remained devastating. We are forever indebted to these people for sharing such personal aspects of their own lives so that facing our own situation was easier.
Ace before the surgery:
Ace after the surgery:
