Our Patients

Glennon kid, Walker

Walker Lydick

When Gretchen learned her unborn son had Down syndrome, she was shocked and scared. Would she love this baby? Would his big brothers accept him? Would he even survive? As a young mom, she wasn’t sure she was equipped to care for him properly, but committed herself to giving him the best life possible —…

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Ollie Geen

In October of 2021, Jennifer and Brian took their 2 year-old son, Ollie to Urgent Care for a persistent belly ache. He had been saying his belly hurt on and off for a few weeks, but it had gotten worse for him after a fall on the playground. Knowing that COVID could present as gastrointestinal…

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Frank Marchesi III

Frank Marchesi, III., of O’Fallon, MO was a healthy 16 year-old who enjoyed hanging out with his friends, working out and playing hockey. Life changed abruptly on 03/29 when Frankie was taken to SSM Health St. Joseph Lake St. Louis ER for chest pains. After blood work and an EKG, Frankie was diagnosed with Pericarditis. …

Jack Burke

Jack Burke

During their second pregnancy, Jack’s parents found out that they were carriers of the cystic fibrosis gene, meaning there was a 25% chance that their children would be born with this chronic illness. They were blessed with two healthy daughters before Jack was born on July 2, 2009, and tested positive for cystic fibrosis. Jack…

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Stella Thomas

Just keep swimming. If you are familiar with the Disney movie, “Finding Nemo”, you might remember that Dory is trying to find her parents. Through adversity, adventure, uncertainty, and doom she searches and searches. Just when all hope is lost, a light shines on everything and Dory and her parents are reunited. Throughout this movie,…

Hannah and Hailey Schilly

Hannah and Hailey Schilly

Hannah The Schilly family of Crystal City, MO has two amazing daughters – Hannah, who is the oldest (13 as of this story), and Hailey, age 11. Hailey has been a patient at SSM Health Cardinal Glennon since she was 18 months old. Parents Heather and Tom never thought that BOTH of their girls would…

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Lavender Watson

Rose and Demetrius Watson of St. Louis, MO were given grim odds about the survival of their unborn baby, Lavender. However, this now sassy 5-year-old, known as “The Queen”, has been proving predictions wrong every step of the way. “Incompatible with life.” “Chromosomal abnormality”. “Might not survive long after birth”. These were words that Rose…

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Charlie Erbland

In early 2016, Rachel and Steve of Arcadia Valley, MO were living a full and busy life. They owned and managed a farm, had two dogs, and were raising 5 children ranging in age from 3 to 16 years. Steve traveled often with his job. Rachel home-schooled their 5 children. Both maintained the farm and…

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Margot and Caratacus Stearns

Erica Jolene Stearns was born with non-isolated esophageal atresia and tracheoesophageal fistula. She was mute until the age of 3, g-tube dependent until the age of 5, and tracheostomy dependent until the age of 15. Throughout her childhood and early adulthood, she witnessed her parents face numerous challenges as they confronted many complex medical issues.…

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Colton Friese

On October 16, 2020, at approximately 4:30pm, 19 year-old Colton was on his way home from work driving his reliable Chevy Cobalt. He had proudly saved and bought himself a Dodge Charger in March 2020 before the pandemic started, but he liked saving his “pride and joy” for special occasions vs. day-to-day travel.  Colton was…