Ellie Wilson was a typical active toddler at 16 months old. And then she wasn’t. “She met all her milestones but then she started limping on her left leg,” explains Jill Wilson, Ellie’s mother. “Three weeks later, Ellie could no longer walk, stand or crawl. Within six weeks, she lost her ability to use her arms, too. It just came on so fast.”
2022 ushers in a new chair and new members to Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital’s board of directors.
The most important lesson Emily Smith, RN, has learned as a nurse at Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital it to just “go with the flow.” And she shares that wisdom with every nurse she trains. “It’s good to have a plan but it’s also a valuable skill to make the best of whatever is thrown at you because you never know what’s going to happen each day,” Emily explains. “Plans change and that’s OK. It’s all about having a positive attitude and rolling with the punches.”
Each year, Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital partners with Fire Truck O’Toys to host a Santa for Siblings event just for siblings of patients at the hospital. “We are a holistic hospital so we work to support families and siblings as well as patients,” explains Tricia Sievers, the Ranken Jordan volunteer manager who created the annual Santa for Siblings event in 2014. “Family members are often so focused on their child who is a patient that their other children don’t get as much attention. Santa for Siblings is a special time just for siblings so they know they’re appreciated, too.”
Gateway Classic Cars is hosting its annual Holiday Open House once again this Saturday, Dec. 4, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Ranken Jordan and Gateway Classic Cars would like to invite fellow car enthusiasts to join us in the return of this gloriously fun holiday get-together. Let us celebrate and help Fire Truck O’Toys make a multitude of children’s dreams come true as we collectively break records stuffing the firetruck to its brim.