Families share their Children’s of Mississippi stories as 2025 Ambassadors

Published on Monday, October 21, 2024

By: Annie Oeth, aoeth@umc.edu

Photos By: Joe Ellis and Lindsay McMurtray/ UMMC Communications

For Nikita Roberts of Jackson, the decision to represent Children’s of Mississippi was an easy one.

“If we can help Children’s of Mississippi, we’re there,” she said.

Her daughter, Lundyn, will be representing Children’s of Mississippi in 2025 as a Patient Ambassador. Through the new program, the patients and their families will share their stories during events such as Mississippi Miracles Radiothon and dance marathons at universities, colleges and high schools around the state as well as in their hometowns.

Children’s of Mississippi CEO Dr. Guy Giesecke said the entire children’s hospital care team is grateful for the Patient Ambassadors’ support.

“The advocacy of these patients and their families is so meaningful and speaks to the quality of care at Children’s of Mississippi,” he said. “We’re thankful for their inspirational stories, and we are privileged to support these children and help them reach their full potential.”

Each family’s medical journey is different, but all show the importance of the state’s only children’s hospital and its network of specialty clinics for follow-up care, said Jen Hospodor, senior director of strategic partnerships at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.

"Each personal story underscores the vital role Children’s of Mississippi plays in our community,” she said. “Their stories not only inspire hope but also emphasize Children’s of Mississippi’s mission of helping all the state’s children reach their full potential.”

A common thread among the 2025 Patient Ambassador families is their commitment to representing Children’s of Mississippi, said Amber Magee, community development coordinator.

"These families are thankful for the care their children have received at Children’s of Mississippi," she said. "They have expressed their gratitude by sharing their stories and volunteering at events for Children’s of Mississippi and Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals."

Having a children’s hospital at an academic medical center means her son has received the highest level of care, said Kristel Taylor-Robinson, mom of Aiden Robinson. “With Children’s of Mississippi, I don’t have to search for a specialist. They’re all right here.”

With the opening of the Kathy and Joe Sanderson Tower at Children’s of Mississippi in 2020, the state’s only children’s hospital got an update that patients and their families appreciate, said Jessica Overby, mom to Owen and Nathan. “Now, when Nathan needs an MRI, it’s in a pirate ship,” she said of the imaging center in the tower.

How important it is to have a children’s hospital in the state wasn’t something that Melinda Porch, mom of Emma Porch, thought about before her daughter needed care.

“Others may not understand how valuable the children’s hospital is to us,” she said. “You never realize how blessed you are to have that care until it’s needed.”

The 2025 Patient Ambassadors include:

• Mamie Sisco of Madison, who has 22q.11 deletion syndrome (DiGeorge syndrome), a rare genetic condition affecting the heart, immune system and facial characteristics.
• Emma Porch of Pelahatchie, who was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a critical congenital heart condition in which the left side of the heart doesn’t form correctly during pregnancy, and Shone's complex, a condition that affects blood flow in the left side the heart. She also has scoliosis, a curvature of the spine, and celiac disease, an immune system reaction to eating gluten.
• Madilyn Allbritton of Charleston, who was diagnosed with a rare type of bacterial meningitis at 2 weeks old. 
• Lundyn Roberts of Jackson, who was born with Aicardi Syndrome, a rare genetic condition characterized by the partial or complete absence of the corpus callosum of the brain, and Dandy-Walker syndrome, a rare congenital brain malformation.
• Taliyah Walker of Jackson, who was born with a malformed trachea and esophagus, kidney disease, a heart defect, duodenal atresia, and one ear.
• Tucker Jones of Brandon, who developed an intestinal malrotation as an 18-month-old. He underwent emergency surgery at Children’s of Mississippi to correct the condition.
• Aiden Robinson of Brandon, who was diagnosed with sagittal craniosyntosis, a birth defect that occurs when the sagittal suture in a baby's skull fuses before birth, and neurofibromatosis type I, a genetic condition that causes changes in skin pigment and tumors on nerve tissue.
• Owen Overby, who was diagnosed with viral meningitis as an infant and benign familial macrocephaly, and his older brother Nathan Overby of Flowood, who has neurofibromatosis (Nf1) and chronic Chiari malformation, a condition in which brain tissue extends into the spinal canal.
• Deuce Bloodsaw of Madison was born at 27 weeks’ gestation, starting life in neonatal intensive care. He sees Children’s of Mississippi doctors today for asthma and cardiological care.
• JD Johnson of Magee began seeing cardiologists before he was born at UMMC’s Center for Maternal and Fetal Care after being diagnosed with a congenital heart condition. He also has heterotaxy syndrome, a rare condition where many organs in the chest and abdomen are formed abnormally, in the wrong position or missing. Today he uses a pacemaker.
• Bentley Strickland of Union, who has Hurler syndrome, a rare genetic condition that leaves him unable to digest sugar. Undigested sugar molecules build up in the bodies of children with Hurler Syndrome, damaging the brain, heart and other organs. Hurler Syndrome, or mucopolysaccharidosis type 1, can also result in joint stiffness and pain, impaired growth and vision and hearing loss.

Families of patients interested in joining in events supporting Children’s of Mississippi should email communityevents@umc.edu or call 601-213-8054.