Posted on 12/12/2004 3:55:37 PM PST by AM2000
JACKSONVILLE, FL -- When most parents have a baby, they spend months dreaming about what their bundle of joy will look like. Will she look like mom? Will he have dad's eyes? But for one local Navy family, the birth of their daughter didn't give them the answers to those questions. Their daughter was born without a face.
When Tammy was pregnant, she knew something was wrong. At worst, they thought maybe their baby had a cleft lip.
So Tammy, and her husband Tom, went to the hospital happy, until the birth.
"The nurse is like, 'We got her stable, we need to rush her upstairs,'" explains Tom, as he recalls every minute of that day. "And the nurse asked, 'Do you want your wife to see her now?'"
Tom says he thought to himself, "Before she gets the shock I did, let me take a picture so she's prepared."
Tammy hadn't seen her new baby yet, because she almost bled to death during delivery. Tammy would be okay, meanwhile, dad went to take pictures of his new daughter.
But no matter what, these new parents had a wish. "That if there was something wrong, she wouldn't be alone. We wanted to make sure she felt loved," said Tom, as he began to cry. "She squeezed my hand."
Little Juliana is missing 30 - 40 percent of the bones in her face.
"She has no upper jaw, no cheek bones, no eye sockets, and she's missing the corner of her ear," explains Tom.
Her birth defect is called Treacher Collins Syndrome. Doctors say it's the worst case they've ever seen.
So, how do you get people to see past all the defects, and find her heart? For mom, it just hurts.
"I just wish people would ask questions. Don't just stare," says Tammy. "I guess the most hurtful thing came not long ago, a little girl said she was disgusting."
Juliana has to eat through her stomach, and she has a trach to breathe. Already, less than two years into her life, she's had 14 surgeries. Doctors say she could need at least 30 more.
Every time she goes to the hospital, doctors make a mold of her head, and then reconstruct her skull to figure out the next step.
It's a life-long process that's draining for Tammy and Tom. Even still, they're thankful and full of love for their sweet child.
"God never gives you more than you can handle. I figure she has a lot to show everyone... to show the world," says Tom.
If you are interested in helping the Wetmore family, a savings account is set up for donations at the Vystar Credit Union in Middleburg.
Donations can be made at ANY Vystar Credit Union to Juliana Wetmore at member number 2102465.
Direct donations can be sent to:
Juliana Wetmore
3018 Hickory Glenn Dr.
Orange Park, FL 32065
It is OUR responsibility to ease the suffering of babies and others. What are we waiting for?
ping
I don't read everything posted. I saw your one word reply and made a comment. If you don't want to reply you don't have to.
Not hers, silly....nor that of her parents. We live in a fallen world.....one that is increasingly removed from its once-made-perfect state. This is not the will of God. We see the will of God in His having made a paradise in which He placed man, and they had perfect communion - Creator and creation. Until man bought the first lie...."hast God said." Most are still buying that same lie today....believing that God has not already spoken.
Bless you annie for your wonderful response.
This little girl will someday have a face, and a beautiful one - on THIS earth, for we now have the ability to perform miracles in surgery. Watch and see.
Although she may not yet have her face, she has something that no one can buy: the true love of a family.
When we hear from her, as an adult, she will be the one to say: I knew I was truly loved. There are millions who would wish they could say that of their families: "I knew I was truly loved"...
Things can always be worse .
Mark for donation.
Don't judge until you've been there.
That mom is allowed to feel anything she darn well wants to feel. There is nothing 'preachy' about her feelings and wants. She was given the opportunity to express her feelings about her situation and she answered truthfully. Nothing wrong with that.
God is already glorified in your testimony, K. Your son may be handicapped in a visible way....but all of us were (and some still are) handicapped by our often invisible sin. Praise be to Him who bore all of that in His own body for us. And we will stand with Him in that day.....
How has God been cruel to this child? It is man who is cruel.
God has never struck me, but I have had people beat me til I bled.
God has never been unfaithful to me, but I have seen loved ones turn to others in spite of vows.
God has never taken anything from me, but I have seen thieves rob me blind.
God has never lied to me, but I have seen my most trusted companions break all trust.
God has never hurt me, tortured me, afflicted me, or hated me, but that has all happened at the hands of man. Why am I still happy?
Because it was God who loved me and was there for me - it was God who gave me strength to get up off the floor and face life again. It was God who took me by the hand and lead me back to the land of the living, back to love, back to joy. I found faith in the desert, hope in my prison, and a song in the night, because it is God who has made those who truly love me. It is God who has made all things good.
Evil comes, because it is the way of the world: it is God who comes to save us from this world.
Why else would he have come on that Christmas, so long ago?
You mean as though anyone cares about your opinion on Someone you obviously know nothing about. What an ego!
Seems a wee bit stiff to me to punish all humanity for what amounted to Adam sassing his Father. It explains at least a few of the "teenage boy chained in the basement and fed only on alternate Tuesdays" stories we seem to see more and more these days.
"I worked at an art school for the disabled for a few months. Some of the students were terribly disfigured. I remember one who when I first saw her I flinched. She turned out to be my favorite student. She was SO funny. To this day I laugh when I remember some of the things she said and did."
Sounds like she was the teacher and you were the student.
God bless this little angel.
"Either god does not exist, or he is incredibly cruel at times."
This is not God's world. God does not interfere here except under special circumstances. It is the natural world where we have to learn to survive and grow spiritually. Think of Earth as basic training for Heaven.
I shudder to think of some here who will face the King of the Universe with their simple pleas of "I wasn't as bad as the next guy"...or "I think you're wrong and I know better"....or "I did some good deeds that surely must have outweighed the bad. Weren't you keeping score?"
Prayers offered up for this girl and her family. I am truly humbled by the courage they are showing.
"God has a purpose for each of us."
That is so true.
"God is not mocked."
Amen, I was proud to read that Bible verse at my father's funeral. He was a man who endured much ill-health; not like this little girl as I am sure he'd be the first to point out.
But God is NOT mocked. Amen to that I say. And all who think they know better than God, they'd be well advised to think again.
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