Our Riley Kid of the Week for this week is Isabella Cruz! Isabella and her family are new to PUDM and we are so excited to have them! Isabella is 5 years old and her favorite food is chocolate and she loves the color purple. She is also a huge fan of cats and dogs. She loves her big brother Connor, who is 6 years old. Connor loves blue and is crazy about all different sports including basketball, football, and baseball. Connor loves Purdue as well! Boiler Up! Isabella and Connor were both born in San Diego, California. The Cruz family moved back to Indiana to be close to family due to Isabella’s medical needs and they now live in Brownsburg. Isabella’s Riley story is told below.
Isabella was born with ESRD due to renal dysplasia. While her mommy was pregnant with her it appeared she did not have any kidneys at all and doctors said she would only live for a few minutes. She is a miracle baby and has beaten all odds, making it until she was 4 years old without dialysis! She received a new kidney from her mommy on June 12, 2013.
Not even 2 weeks after her surgery, Isabella returned home and was playing, running and having fun like nothing every happened. And the best part was for the first time in her life, she had normal kidney function! Riley saved Isabella from dialysis and ultimately saved her life. Her quality of like will be so much better now and she can develop and grow as a normal child would!
Once again, a huge welcome to the Cruz family! We are so excited to welcome you to PUDM!
