March 9, 2011 Mailia's Miracle is Celebrating Her Birthday & Blessings Today

It has been a very busy and challenging time for us and Mailia since our last blog post...we have spent the last 4 weeks getting Mailia over another bout of crud she picked up with more visits to her doctors and antibiotics.  This time...we are grateful her cough was not intense and she was successful at keeping the bleeds to her lungs at bay.  She is almost 100%...back to her old self and enjoying the fruits of her daily creations.

Mailia...as some of you know, has been raising some puppies to sell to help us generate funds for her upcoming stem cell therapy and heart surgeries. She is now affiliated with a non profit group, The Alliance for the Advancement of Adult Stem Cell Therapy and Research.  It is Mailia's hope that with the help of her supporters and her "miracle"....she will be able to help so many others through sharing her story and journey, by giving of her time and resources to help raise awareness and funds for others like her.

Mailia was approached and asked if she would consider donating one of her puppies, a beautiful Toy Australian Shepherd named Li'l Dottie....to a benefit fundraiser for our local "Pink Night to Remember" Making Strides for Breast Cancer event last Friday.  The event, was organized by a wonderful group of women who helped us with Mailia's Miracle Night of Hope fundraiser last year. 

The event was a huge success bringing in over $31,000 dollars but the best part of all was the generosity of folks shown to Mailia's and her gift of her little fur baby.  Mailia and Dottie's contribution brought them $2,100.00 that night...but more importantly, it brought a wonderful loving home for Mailia's special little girl and gift.  Breast cancer survivor Paula Boone, a registered nurse from Parker, Colorado won the opportunity to claim Li'l Dottie and take her home to Colorado to her forever loving home.

An emotional and heartfelt evening...or actually day, for earlier that morning...we were once again blessed with the opportunity to tell Mailia's story on our local NBC news station KNDU.  Reporter Chris Holmstrum came out to the house to visit Mailia and do a follow up story about her stem cell therapy last year, and to also share where she is at today...and future therapies to come.



Chris interviewed Mailia and asked how she now feels after her initial adult stem cell procedure last summer. She told Chris that after about a month from having her stem cell procedure, she had in fact felt so much more energy and was able to do so much more physically without her lungs and heart becoming overloaded from all the extra exertion and activities she was now able to do.

Chris was also able to speak over the phone with Dr. Zannos Grekos from Regenocyte to get his perspective of Mailia's initial procedure and his recommendations for another round of stem cells, the next...we are praying will come about in the very near future.  Chris also helped us convey the need to help us raise funds for Mailia's next treatments through a benefit fundraiser event scheduled for April 22nd 2011 and how folks could learn about Mailia through her web site and blog.

We wish to thank Chris Holmstrom and the producers and staff of KNDU for their wonderful follow-up story for Mailia's Miracle...we are truly grateful!  Thank you!

While driving to work last week, I was pondering my thoughts about Mailia and her life up until now, and what a miracle and blessing it has been.  Not a day goes by, that we do not give thanks to God for blessing us with such a beautiful child.

I'll bet...my own mother felt the same way about me...when I was born.  You see...I was not supposed to even be here.  I am alive today...because of the love and generosity of one great man who I owe my life to.

Before I was born, my mother and father lost 3 sons at birth that were "blue babies". My mother Josefina worked for a great man by the name of Herbert Fleischhacker, businessman/banker and philanthropist from San Francisco.  He adored my mom...and during her pregnancy with me, made sure that she would have the best in medical care that could be afforded at that time (1957).  Sadly, Mr. Fleischhacker died in April of that year and I was born the following month in May.  A Blue Baby! 

True to his word, I was delivered at Mt. Zion Hospital in San Francisco and transfused with my mother's blood right away...saving my life.  As I was driving to work, I remember these stories told to me by my mother and I gleaned the true meaning of love and faith and how truly grateful I am...to my parents and Mr. Fleischhacker.  Mr. Fleischhacker, if you are in heaven and looking down on us, you must know what goodness has...and will come to pass from your life's work and contributions.

And so now...here go we.  Our beautiful daughter...whose life we are trying to save with the help, support and prayers of so many.

I peeked in on Mailia this morning...gratitude and love pouring from my heart for giving us another year with her.  Happy Birthday sweetheart!  Today marks your 17th year and we get to celebrate it with you today.  We love you so very much and thank you...for choosing us as your parents and guardians in this life.

Let's get the party STARTED!!!!