![]() ![]() ![]() Technically, Patsy is deaf and blind, but Mary said she loves noises and loves to smile. Local Atchison companies Bottorff Construction, Steve Marlatt Construction, BRT Construction and Carrigan Lumber all stepped in to help. “Someone donated a wheelchair, so it was time.” “Patsy was four and getting too heavy for them to carry,” Knight Terry Wagner said. Patrick Church in Atchison stepped up when Patsy needed a wheelchair ramp. Luke’s parents moved to Atchison to help with Patsy’s sleepless nights, and the Knights Council 818 of St. Their neighbors have been buying diapers for Patsy since she was born. It’s saying, ‘I will help you,’” Mary said. Their family and community continue to offer support. “She can’t swallow well, so she eats four times a day through a feeding tube, gets nine medications a day and has approximately 1,000 seizures a day,” Mary said. Pictured are: (back row, from left) Luke Baker, Patsy Baker, Mary Baker and Patti Quinn (Mary’s mom) (front row, from left) Terry Wagner, Jamie Funk, Wally Wagner, Rick Funk, Rusty Johnson, Dan Quinn, Tim Wagner and Joe Quinn. Knights of Columbus members and family helped the Bakers build a wheelchair ramp to their house when Patsy became too heavy to carry up the steps. with medication and follows a special diet. Patsy is now 4 years old, gets up around 7:30 a.m. Patsy remained on hospice for over six weeks. “Hospice got to our house before we did,” Mary said. The Bakers took Patsy home that same day. ![]() Patsy would probably live only a week or two. On day three, the NICU doctor told the Bakers not to get their hopes up. In those few precious minutes with Patsy, she was passed between family members.Īnd then they waited. “We were celebrating a double birthday,” said Mary. Father Simon baptized her and doctors and nurses joined the Baker family as they sang “Happy Birthday.” “Patsy had a strong heartbeat and came out crying on her own,” Mary said. In addition, Luke’s brother, Benedictine Father Simon Baker, held a relic of Blessed Father McGivney to Mary’s stomach at a Benedictine College healing Mass and prayed for a miracle. He chose Blessed Father McGivney because the miracle attributed to him was similar to Patsy’s. “We had thousands praying for her,” Luke said. Luke, an insurance agent for the Knights of Columbus, asked people to pray for Patsy through the intercession of Blessed Father Michael McGivney, the founder of the Knights. Even with their plan in place, they knew Patsy might not survive the pregnancy. They wanted their daughter to feel loved and cared for, to be as comfortable as possible and they wanted her baptized. Instead, the doctors asked the Bakers, “What are your goals for her?” The Bakers wanted a few simple things. She would most likely be born deaf and blind and in a vegetative state until she died.Ībortion was not offered that day. She would not live more than a few minutes without the life support of Mary’s body. The doctors told the Bakers their baby would not survive. In a boardroom full of doctors from the newborn intensive care unit (NICU), neurologists, internal fetal specialists and palliative care, Patsy’s scans were discussed. She is now 4 years old.Īt 28 weeks, Mary transferred to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri. Left, Mary and Luke Baker rejected abortion when they were told their daughter Patsy had very little chance of survival after birth. “It felt like our baby was being treated like a cancer that needed to be dealt with,” Mary said. They were told to expect anything from learning disabilities to full-time care. The specialist said, “The fetus has severe microcephaly” - a condition in which a baby’s head is much smaller than expected. Spotting abnormalities, the specialist asked them to come back.ĭuring an ultrasound at 22 weeks, Patsy was diagnosed. Only after the Bakers said no to an abortion did the specialist examine her. Due to Mary’s four prior miscarriages, Groth referred the Bakers to a maternal fetal specialist.Īt their initial appointment, the specialist offered an abortion based on statistics of older women and pregnancy risks. McGarrett Groth, OD, of Amberwell Hospital in Atchison, had delivered Patsy’s three older brothers - Joe, now 12 Sam, 9 and Charlie, 7. It was early 2017 when the Bakers found out Mary was pregnant with Patsy. Mary and Luke Baker were planning a funeral instead. ![]() They are, from left, Charlie (7), Joe (12) and Sam (9).ĪTCHISON - While most expectant couples are busy painting nurseries, being showered with gifts and posting pictures of their growing bellies on social media, this Atchison couple was not. Below, Patsy, who was born with microcephaly - a condition in which a baby’s head is much smaller than expected - is surrounded by her three doting brothers. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |