COTA for Team Miracle

Our Story

Meet Miracle, a spunky and joyful teenager! Miracle (Mira for short) was born with gastroschisis, a condition where part of the intestines are outside of the body. Most times, immediately after birth, this is not an issue and a quick fix with a minor incision and a “funnel” to help them get back where they belong, usually only taking a few days and baby is ready to head home with a small scar to show for it.

Not the case with our sweet Mira. The part of her intestines that were outside of her body atrophied while in the womb (blood flow was cut off as the skin closed up around the intestines, causing that part to die), so that it had to be removed immediately after birth. Well, Mira was a preemie, and removing that much of her bowels left her with a condition called “Extreme Short Bowel Syndrome”. At the time, we were informed that she only had 13% of her small intestine left (you need 10% just to survive). This left Mira continuing the fight of her life as she faced so many challenges for such a tiny baby.

In order to survive and hopefully thrive, she was put on TPN (Total Parenteral Nutrition). It is a medical treatment where all the necessary nutrients a person needs are provided directly into the bloodstream through an intravenous (IV) catheter, in her case, a Broviac line. This line ran directly through her heart which created its own plethora of issues for her and the family as they diligently had to keep it infection and clog free. Although the TPN was supplying her needs, it was also destroying her liver.

Since birth, Mira has spent more time in the hospital than out. She has missed so much of her childhood due to doctors, nurses, hospitals, clinics, tests, etc. She has had numerous surgeries to help her remaining intestines become healthy, all to no avail.

Fast forward to 18 months ago and we were told that she needed a transplant because her liver was in stage three cirrhosis, causing her pancreas and spleen to work overtime and they, too, would need to be replaced. Mira and her mom basically moved to the Ronald McDonald House in Cincinnati in May 2024, leaving dad and brothers at home. Monthly visits were hard on everyone (physically, emotionally, and financially). The degree of difficulty to leave her and return home to job and school was weighing heavy on the entire family. In January 2025, Mom was contacted by a transplant team in DC that specializes in multivisceral transplants. Within a few days, Mira was dual listed with both Cincinnati and DC.

On February 4, 2025, Mira underwent 15 hours of surgery and received the life-changing organs she needed; liver, intestines, spleen, pancreas, and stomach. We cannot express our gratitude to the donor family. We know how difficult it is for them.

As of today, Mira is exceeding the doctors’ expectations and all is going well. She has a long road ahead of her these next few months and years, but we know that God has her in His might hand. We will keep you posted as to her progress.

Your prayers, support, and donations to COTA are invaluable for the family, our journey and her continued fight.

The Children’s Organ Transplant Association (COTA) helps children and young adults who need a life-saving transplant by providing fundraising assistance and family support. COTA is the nation’s only fundraising organization solely dedicated to raising life-saving dollars in honor of transplant-needy children and young adults. 100% of each contribution made to COTA in honor of our patients helps meet transplant-related expenses. COTA’s services are free to our families, and gifts to COTA are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.