Family of ‘miracle’ baby Saylor blessed by WSMV4′s Surprise Squad
Saylor will be fitted for her first leg prosthetic once she starts crawling and will face several hand surgeries in the future.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - “They did not think that she was gonna make it,” said Tiffany Billington, grandmother to micro preemie, Saylor Rae Walker. “She is 100% a miracle.”
Described by family as a fighter and little warrior, Saylor was delivered emergency C-section at just 26 weeks, weighing only one pound and 15 ounces, almost fitting in the palm of her father’s hand.
Mom, Kassidee Walker, had faced her own life-threatening complications throughout her pregnancy that sent her to the hospital where she was admitted at just 19 weeks pregnant. She spent eight long weeks on the high-risk obstetrics floor before Saylor’s arrival.
Kassidee said following the emergency surgery, she and her husband, Josh, anxiously waited several hours to learn Saylor’s condition and said they received some news they never expected.
“The doctor looked at us and said, ‘Listen, she has some abnormalities. She was born with amniotic banding syndrome,’” said Kassidee.
The syndrome, according to the National Institutes of Health, is a rare condition caused by strands of the amniotic sac separating, then entangling limbs, and digits of other parts of the fetus. In Saylor’s case, it affected both her hands, her right foot and essentially amputated part of her left leg.
“At first we were absolutely terrified to see that, you know, she’s missing a foot, and then she has like some hand abnormalities with like half a finger and some webbing in this hand,’’ explained Kassidee.
Both Kassidee and Josh said little Saylor’s determined spirit to survive combined with lots of prayer, love and care meant that after 73 days in the hospital, their baby girl was finally coming home.
“She’s been through more than most humans will ever experience in their life,” said Josh. “She’s the strongest person I’ve ever met in my life.”
“She is driven. She’s not giving up,” explained Kassidee. “So that was kind of like a reminder to me, you know, you cannot give up on your child because your child is fighting harder than anybody you know...”
What Kassidee and Josh did not know, our WSMV4 Surprise Squad sponsor, Bart Durham Injury Law, was there at the interview location with WSMV4′s Holly Thompson to present them with a check for $2,000. It was a surprise they never saw coming and said they drastically needed to help pay mounting medical bills.
Kassidee shared with Thompson that their insurance company had called them midway through her nearly two-month hospital stay, informing them her pregnancy and maternity care were not covered.
“You don’t understand how amazing this is to us,” explained Kassidee, “and how much stress this takes off of our plate!”
“It feels so good to be able to help them. It really does,” said Blair Durham.
With his family’s own child’s NICU experience years ago, Durham explained that it is all about giving back.
“To come full circle and give back to someone that was in that situation, feels awesome,” said Durham.
Saylor will be fitted for her first leg prosthetic once she starts crawling and will face several hand surgeries in the future.
Kassidee explained that whatever the challenge- their determined baby girl will be up for it.
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