Last year Eden had heart surgery to correct a condition she had called SVT. You can look here and find the post I wrote following her surgery. She is doing fantastic! We continue to have check-ups with her cardiologist, and her heart is doing great. She fully recovered from the surgery and has finally begun to put on some weight and has hit a growth spurt.
While Eden was in the hospital, our family was able to stay at the Ronald McDonald house in Greenville. It was a huge blessing to be able to be so close. At the time Titus was only 6 months old and was nursing him every 4 hours. He refused to take a bottle. We worked out a plan so my wonderful In-laws would keep the boys and bring them to me when Titus needed to eat. I was able to keep Titus with me at the Ronald McDonald house and Larry was able to stay at the hospital with Eden overnight. I tell you, there has never been a situation where my heart was so torn between wanting to be with each of my children and serving them both at the same time. I had to realize the importance of the people God put in our lives to help and accept the generosity other others. It was a learning period for sure, and everything worked out beautifully.
Oh the story gets better :) Here is the letter I wrote to the Ronald McDonald house:
Dear staff of the Ronald McDonald House,
I wanted to take a moment to express my heartfelt thank you
for the wonderful hospitality we received while staying at the Ronald McDonald
house in Greenville. I also wanted to let you know that Eden is healing well
and has a great prognosis for her future.
If you would please allow me a moment, I would like to share
a story with you. Our family moved to Williamston almost 4 years ago for my
husband to pastor a church. One of our sweet church members was a lady
named Mabel Roberson. Small in stature, but big in heart, Miss Mabel was an incredible
woman. Mabel was a nurse and spent her whole life caring for others, especially
children. She was known to take sick children home with her to continue their
care. Mabel was a talented woman and quilting was one of her passions. When Mabel passed away, her family gave her
quilting material to our church.
A suggested was made that we gather some of Mabel’s
Christmas material and make Christmas quilts for the Ronald McDonald house. I’m
not a quilter, but I helped cut material and gather supplies for the other
ladies as they made the quilts. It was
fun making the quilts, but soon I moved to other projects and life with small
children. I didn’t give much thought to those
quilts or the families who would receive them, until Eden’s surgery.
As I completed our check out, one of the ladies took me to a
side room and shared with me how every child that stayed at the Ronald McDonald
house received a quilt. As she opened the cabinet, in the bottom corner, there
were two of Miss Mabel’s Christmas quilts.
It’s hard to find word to describe that special that moment.
I know Miss Mabel would have been so
pleased to know her quilting supplies were still bringing joy to sick children.
I never imagined that my family would have been one of the families that would
have received one of her quilts. That gift was a sweet reminder of Mabel’s love,
and the love of the women of our church who quilted the blankets. It was also a
great reminder of God’s love for our family and for Eden. It was a reminder of
His love for each of the children and families that the Ronald McDonald house
serves.
I hope this letter will be an encouragement to the Staff and
families at the Ronald McDonald house. As someone who has been on both sides of
the ministry, making the quits and having a child that received one, it is a
pleasure to share this story with you in hopes of encouraging others. May the
Lord bless and keep you as you minister to the children and families who stay
with you.
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