Mary Marino, director of rehabilitative services, has always focused on the big picture. Early in her career, she worked as a speech-language pathologist, coming up with ideas and solutions to help her pediatric patients overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Later, looking at the big picture meant joining a team that helped to streamline Akron Children’s separate […]
10 out of 10: Siblings are a perfect match for bone marrow transplant
A typical day for Wyatt Brown is spent ‘doing jobs’ around his house like picking up frogs, digging in dirt and learning how to fix things. But last year, just a day after his 4th birthday, Wyatt’s days were anything but typical as he started testing and treatment at the Showers Family Center for Childhood […]
West Akron teenager gains confidence and independence, one step at a time
Like most teenagers, Serenity Smolen is constantly learning, exploring and discovering what she does and doesn’t like. Some of the time, she encounters a learning curve. When it comes to conquering new undertakings, Serenity, 13, is a pro. It’s something she’s done all her life. Serenity, who was born with congenital limb differences that affect […]
Annie’s Super Strength
With her larger-than-life personality, Annie, 6, has always had an unbreakable spirit despite her medical conditions. At her mom’s 5-month ultra sound, Annie’s arms and legs were measuring smaller than a typical baby. Specialists thought she may have achondroplasia (dwarfism), but genetic testing and additional scans revealed more concerns. Doctors detected healing breaks in her […]
Brotherly bond
The Venner boys share a similar diagnosis – autism – but, just as no 2 kids are alike, neither is their disorder. “As we listened to our friends talk about their children the same age, we began to realize Oscar was very different,” said Jason, the boys’ dad. “He wasn’t socializing with kids his age, and often found repetitive and routine things much more a necessity than comforting. His pediatrician suggested that we test him for autism.” As Oscar struggled with fine motor […]
Harper, the Warrior Princess
Harper has been on life support – twice – had 4 open heart surgeries, 5 eye surgeries, countless therapy sessions and even more needle pokes, but not once has she let anything get the best of her. She’s overcome every obstacle in her own time. At birth, Harper’s parents were surprised to learn she had Down syndrome, but it was her heart defect, atrioventricular canal defect, that caused them worry. The hole in […]
