Meet Our Champions

Merveille’s cleft journey began long before her birth. During their 3-month ultrasound, her parents learned that she would be born with a cleft lip and palate. For her father, who was also born with a cleft lip, the diagnosis was familiar, but still emotional. Her mother recalls, "You can’t help but ask, ‘Did I do something wrong?’" At six months gestation, the diagnosis was confirmed, and the family was immediately connected with the Maxillofacial Program at Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital, a Children’s Miracle Network hospital, which would become their lifeline. Then, at just 32 weeks, Merveille’s mom experienced a severe placental abruption and was rushed to the hospital. Merveille was delivered by emergency cesarean section and life-flighted to Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital, where she spent 11 weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Her parents visited daily, watching her on the NicView cameras at night, and leaning on the empathy and expertise of her care team. Feeding was one of the biggest challenges, until speech and feeding therapists from the Maxillofacial Program helped them find the right bottles and techniques, even coordinating with nurses to practice safe feeding before she went home. Merveille underwent her palate repair surgery at 14 months old, and today, she continues to receive regular evaluations from a multidisciplinary team of orthodontists, dentists, audiologists, and developmental specialists. The family calls this program their lifeline: without it, they would have to drive hundreds of miles from home for care. Children’s Miracle Network funding has ensured the program’s survival, supporting nurses, speech therapists, and specialized feeding resources for children like Merveille. Now a bright, curious kindergartener, Merveille is thriving, living proof of the power of expert care and the community that ensures no family faces a cleft journey alone.