Evan's story, Chapter 6, Friends in the Community

Friends in the Community

Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause,
and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness.

Doctrine and Covenants 58-27

   Dr. Bravo will always have a special place in our hearts. When Evan came home as a newborn after spending 17 days in the hospital, enduring two surgeries, he was a very medically fragile baby. He had been diagnosed with a rare and life threatening kidney disease. Our pediatrician at the time just didn't seem to have a handle on things. She displayed a bad attitude when Cindy informed her Evan would be born with spina bifida and hydrocephalus. She asked if Cindy understood how serious his condition was. Reading between the lines, Cindy felt the doctor wanted her to terminate the pregnancy. It was time to find another doctor.

   Cindy asked a friend who worked as an OB nurse to recommend a pediatrician. She told her about this young doctor who had saved some babies lives. We made an appointment and Cindy brought our tiny little four week old newborn baby to see Dr. Rene Bravo.

   The first thing he told her was, "I want you to know that I admire you for having this baby!"

 Wow! A doctor who understood that Evan's life was precious to his family!! Dr. Bravo was open and honest and valued Cindy’s opinion and thoughts as a mother. On that first visit he even told her the name of Evan's kidney disease, which other doctors just dismissed as "possible premature kidneys".

   Dr. Bravo is a good Christian family man, a brilliant doctor, and to this day, Cindy, Evan, and I are proud to call him our friend. A few years after he met Evan, he will save his life.

   Around the time Evan was born, Jehovah Witness missionaries introduced us to Donna Straffordson. Her son, Adam, was three years old. He had been born with spina bifida. Donna and Adam visited with us and provided encouragement.  She introduced us to Carla and Roy Mumaw. Their daughter, D’Arcy, was about two years old. They still live in Nipomo and we still consider them friends. D’Arcy and Evan are currently on a power wheelchair soccer team. Donna and Carla were members of the Spina Bifida Association. Through this organization, we met David and Terry Gray and their daughter Jennie. All of these fine people were going through the same trials we were.

   I should say good things about the company I worked for, Pacific Gas and Electric. When Evan was diagnosed, we were in a refueling outage. I was working up to seventy hours per week. I met with the foreman I was working with, Bruce Lewis, and apprised him of my situation. The company was very supportive, allowing me to take off work as required. I was also given light assignments to lessen my stress.

   So, the baby was born. We have a support network in place. We are ready to provide the baby with our undying love and support. But we haven’t heard from Evan yet. We are in for a pleasant surprise.