atschool Young Heroes proudly sponsored by:
By: Bailey Hemphill | Photo by: Karnell Perkins
Going in for surgery
Cole Klein
Young Hero: Cole Klein
C
ole Klein is in fourth grade. He has a younger brother, Mason, who looks up to him. He loves animals, being outside, fishing, riding four-wheelers, and golfing; and, like most boys his age, he’s excited to explore the world. But unlike most boys his age, Cole has a unique heart that makes him a hero. When Cole was born, the doctors noted he had a heart murmur, but they didn’t think it was anything to worry about. The pediatrician gave the same answer. Cole’s mother, Tiffany Mytty-Klein, was unsatisfied with what she was hearing and searched for another pediatrician. This time, the new pediatrician did not think the heart murmur was normal. Cole was admitted to the hospital at only eight weeks old after being diagnosed with Truncus Arteriosus, a congenital heart defect, and had to stay for the next six weeks. Cole’s heart defect happens to 1 in every 10,000 babies. “Once he was diagnosed, the statistics became very overwhelming: 4,000 [infants] don’t live to see their first birthdays. It’s a really hard thing to begin to comprehend,” says Tiffany. Cole was fighting to live. For the first four weeks at Children’s Hospital, the staff worked to get him strong enough to undergo the surgery he needed to survive. From the day he was admitted to the hospital at eight weeks old to the present time, Cole has had three open-heart surgeries. “We’re kind of waiting to see what happens
at this time,” Tiffany says. “He knows that he won’t ever be medically cured. He understands the conduit he received last summer is not lasting as expected, so surgery is likely to come again in the very near future.” But when Cole puts on a shirt, he is like any other kid. To the naked eye, no one would know that Cole suffers from a congenital heart defect. He doesn’t have medication or supplemental oxygen. “It’s a blessing and a curse,” explains Tiffany. “He’s at the point where he can still be normal, but it’s hard for people to understand why he gets worn out quicker or that he has this challenge that will constantly be with him in his life.” Tiffany says she wants Cole to know that his heart defect makes him unique, but she doesn’t ever want him to use it as a crutch. “I tell him that I was born with green eyes; he was born with blue. I was born with a heart that doesn’t need to be fixed; he was— that’s just the way things are.” Tiffany says she was worried that he would be like some who get really down about the things that have happened to them, but Cole is not like that at all. He knows how to get up and walk the next day after surgery, and he doesn’t feel sorry for himself because he knows he has to keep going. “He has such a kind heart,” she says. “He has this beautiful hope that SPECTRUM the story always comes out right in the end.”
family
Family Spectrum and Omaha Storm Chasers would like to honor your Young Hero. Send nominations to Bailey@OmahaPublications.com.
• readonlinenow.com November 2011 • • • •
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