The Story
Like all sweet little girls, Juana spent her early childhood dreaming of what she be when she grew up. Her dream was to be a teacher. She aspired to make a difference, share her knowledge and help others shine. She loved playing with pencils, books, notebooks, chalkboards and crayons. She had all the essential tools, enthusiasm, compassion and intelligence needed for the job. She even had experience. She loved taking care of all of the children in the family and babysitting was something she excelled at.
When Juana was fourteen, she was excitedly planning her Quinceanera Party in Mexico. This celebration was something she looked forward to every day with excitement and sweet anticipation. Unfortunately, Juana became very ill and never got to enjoy her Quinceanera. Juana had been sick for two weeks with what doctors had said was the flu. It seemed to get worse and worse. She was spending time with her sister Cecilia when she became critically ill. She had fever, chills and nausea. Then she developed a significant headache and became incoherent. Cecilia took her to the ER. It was a wild ride of examinations without answers before they finally identified the problem. Her brain was significantly swollen due to encephalitis caused by an autoimmune disorder. Her brain was so swollen that doctors had to induce a coma.
After five days in a coma, doctors said they did not expect Juana to pull through. She was on life support and they asked the family if they wanted to disconnect her. Her family chose to continue to fight for a miracle and three weeks later she finally opened her eyes and began to breathe on her own. Juana never fully recovered.
"Her family chose to continue to fight for a miracle and three weeks later she finally opened her eyes and began to breathe on her own.\u00a0"
Juana has endured brain surgery, experiences seizures, is in constant pain and has never regained her functional mobility. She cannot walk or talk and has difficulty breathing. Losing her abilities has been challenging for her and her family. The encephalitis changed her life in a devastating way and has affected her both physically and emotionally. Our goal is to bring Juana a whole lot of sunshine! Lifting her spirits, making her smile and bring back some of her joy is our mission!
