Bryan Pridemore first learned about Children’s Miracle Network 10 years ago as an assistant manager at Walmart in Zephyrhills, Fla. He quickly embraced the store’s charity of choice, helping to raise funds through selling hot dogs and participating in fashion shows. But what he didn’t realize is the impact…
CMN Ambassador, Nate Ferrell. Ask 4-year-old Nate Ferrell to show you his ‘arc reactor’ and he will flash a big smile, lift up his shirt and point to his stomach. “See?” Nate may not be the ‘real’ Iron Man, but he certainly is…
In many ways, Sam Blakemore is a typical, active 10-year-old boy. He loves to throw hoops on the basketball court, swim in the pool with his friends and play HALO and Modern Warfare on Xbox. But Sam has a special spirit. He has overcome more trials and tribulations than…
Michael Michael was diagnosed with a brain tumor called Fibrillary Astrocytoma, Grade II at the age of eight, when he had begun to show significant symptoms; he had lost the use of his right arm and was dragging his right foot. Michael’s parents had been given…
Lauren is the sole survivor of triplets. She was born 14 ½ weeks early, weighing only 1 pound 12 ounces and she was about 12 inches long. Her brother Matthew was born that day as well; however, he survived less than 24 hours. Their sister Lily died before birth. Lauren…
Kristin was five years old when she experienced her first seizure. While it only lasted for a few minutes at first, her seizures eventually became more frequent and lasted longer in duration. Obviously, this was of immediate concern to her parents as they were frightened about the health of their…
Kasey, Kevin and Kyle were born with more than the genetic trait that made them identical triplets. They were also born with the same potentially fatal, congential heart defect known as tetralogy of the fallot. University of Florida physicians worked closely with the community physicians who delivered and initially diagnosed…
From the time he was born, Josef had trouble breathing and suffered from colds every month. When he became sick again shortly after his family moved toFlorida, Josef’s doctor sent him to the hospital for x-rays which showed fluid in his lungs and liver and an enlarged heart. They were…
Jessica was born into the world eight weeks premature. Shortly after her birth, she was diagnosed with an intra-ventricular hemorrhage in her brain. Intra-ventricular hemorrhage (IVH) is a type of bleeding from the fragile blood vessels in the brain. These blood vessels are especially fragile in premature infants. In…
Grace At birth, Grace did not cry, wake to feed, or suck her bottle properly. Physicians described her as “floppy” due to her low muscle tone and identified her with “failure to thrive.” Grace was diagnosed with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), a complex genetic disorder that affects…
