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MEDIA CONTACT: Lindsay Maynard lindsaymaynard99@gmail.com 770-605-4915

Child born with hole in her heart, saved by Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals
Kennesaw, Ga. (April 18, 2014) Imagine seeing your newborn child, so small and helpless, being rolled into an emergency room to undergo surgery to repair a gaping hole in her heart. This is what the Rigsby family felt as their daughter, Madeline, was diagnosed with Pulmonary Stenosis and rushed into emergency surgery, just one day after she was born. Without the help of doctors from Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals, Madelines rare condition would have gone undetected and the Rigsby family would have lost their newborn baby. Madeline was a fighter from day one. The doctor told us she had a 10 percent chance of survival, but we refused to lose hope. We knew there were no other doctors that would be more qualified to get her through this than the doctors at CMNH, says Jennifer Rigsby, Madelines mother. During Rigsbys first open-heart surgery, she flat lined. The doctors were barely able to keep her alive, but miraculously they revived her, and after nine weeks in the hospital she was able to go home for the first time. This surgery was the first of eight major surgeries Rigsby has had to endure throughout her life. Ever since Rigsby was born, she has been in and out of the hospital fighting cerebral palsy and the heart condition she was born with. Through the funds donated to Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals by organizations such as Dance Marathon, medical equipment small enough for newborn babies is made. This equipment gives families, like the Rigsby family, hope when their children face insurmountable medical odds. Children come to our hospitals everyday that need special equipment, and without this equipment they would not have a chance at survival. I am so thankful that organizations, like Dance Marathon, donate to CMNH to give these children hope, says Gabby Wilson, Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta nurse and Dance Marathon participant. Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals generate funds in many ways including Miracle Balloon sales, radio fundraising broadcasts, golf tournaments, canister collections, and Dance Marathons. Dance Marathons are unique student-led organizations that high schools and colleges create to raise funds for local Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals. --MORE--

During Dance Marathons, miracle children attend and share their stories with students and community members to show participants how their money can save lives. Each year, Madeline Rigsby attends Kennesaw State Universitys Dance Marathon and inspires students to donate to the cause that saved her life. About KSU Dance Marathon Dance Marathon is a nationwide event hosted by universities and high schools to raise money and awareness for CMNH patients and families. Since 1991 this student-led organization has raised millions of dollars that have been donated in full to local Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals around the country. With the funds donated by this organization, families regain hope that miracles can happen, and lives can be saved. ###