Jessica, 11, undergoes transformation
Warning: This story contains graphic details of a transformational surgery. But it contains beauty, too—the true story of a little girl, who after years of living with a malformed face, is stepping...
View ArticleKaylee’s smile
Don’t let Kaylee Pape’s gentle smile fool you. Plenty of grit and gumption lie beneath the 14-year-old girl’s sweet demeanor. Take, for instance, her decision about the surgery on her upper jaw,...
View ArticleHelping kids smile around the world
Nikki Roper did not expect to fall in love with her baby’s cleft lip. But fall she did, the moment she lay eyes on her son John. Now, as her baby undergoes surgery to his cleft lip and palate, Nikki is...
View ArticleFrom miracle baby to medical pioneer
Ecstatic. That’s how Mike and Debra Koster felt when they cradled their newborn son, Jonathan, 22 years ago. Surprised, too. Until that moment, they did not know that one side of his face had not...
View Article‘The new Jonathan’
Jonathan Koster has one more reason to smile. The young man who became a medical pioneer when he received a custom-designed jaw implant recently underwent a follow-up operation to augment his chin....
View Article‘An incredible gift’
Michael Sprick clutched his mom’s hand in pre-op room 1. Michael, 11, born with Treacher Collins syndrome—same as the boy in the hit movie “Wonder”—awaited surgery on his ear. John Girotto, MD, a...
View ArticleA day for smiles
Wailing on his guitar, Peter Dankleson had kiddos grooving and parents clapping. Dankelson, who has had his fair share of treatment done at the Spectrum Health Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, kicked...
View ArticleAmazing Amelia
Amelia Brusk may only be 5 years old. But with nine reconstructive surgeries under her belt, the Barbie-loving kindergartner could teach the world plenty about overcoming challenges. Amelia has Apert...
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