Submitted by KM Hills.
This summer, during the third week in July, I was approved by the Lake Erie Open Water Swim Assoc. to attempt a 24 mile non-stop swim, from Canada back to Pennsylvania. I spoke about my plans at the April 18, 2022 Lakewood City Council meeting which you can watch at the 53 minute mark, on the City of Lakewood YouTube channel ….
I have elected to have this marathon swim benefit Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital. In 2011, one of our children was taken to Mary Bridge in an unresponsive state and remained in a coma just short of a week. The staff at the PICU was amazing and were able to provide treatment on an ECMO machine (heart/lung bypass.) The initial outlook was less than hopeful and the doctor shared that even if the treatment worked there was still significant risk of severe brain damage. Our child, and family, were lucky as the treatment worked and there is no known brain damage, or other long term effects. Our child has graduated both high school and college and gives back to the community through their creativity and employment, running a youth education program focused on the Arts and Technology.
Mary Bridge provides life saving treatments daily and Lakewood/Pierce County benefits from the amazing skills and experience of the staff. Mary Bridge is currently in the process of building a stand alone, state of the art facility, which will allow for ongoing service to our community for years to come.
I hope to raise $10,000 for Mary Bridge PICU and know I can only reach this goal through the support of family, friends and the greater community. If you are able to help my efforts, and support Mary Bridge, you can make a donation at www.JustGiving.com/LakeErieSwim
You can also help by sharing my story, or by helping me connect with local community service organizations (Rotary, Kiwanis and Lions) or businesses that also want to help make our local community the best it can be.
Thank you for your consideration.
Thank you for sharing this very heartwarming story. Dr. Ron Woods and I developed the Mary Bridge ECMO program. I co-developed and managed this program from program inception until my retirement in 2019. Mary Bridge, and the PICU team specifically, is comprised of individuals dedicated to providing the best care anywhere. Your story is our reason for working tirelessly for the children of our community. Safe swimming and thank you again for sharing your story.
Regards,
Mary Dearth
Mary,
Thank YOU for your work on the ECMO program. I often wonder how many people get to hear about the incredible impacts their lives have on others. Doctors, nurses, etc often see people at the worst moments, but may not get to hear many of the wonderful outcomes AFTER those dark moments. Your work directly touched my life and many of my family members. ECMO at Mary Bridge provided the miracle my family needed and prayed for.
Mrs. Dearth-
Thank you for the well wishes on a safe swim. An even bigger thank you for the dedication and amazing skills you and your team provided our family in a personal time or need. I was truly amazed by the program and at Mary Bridge.
Thank You!!