Fourth-grader Lindsey Harris doesn’t remember coming to Le Bonheur Children’s Medical Center, but her mom Cathy can’t forget it.

After battling cervical cancer and 36 hours of difficult labor, Cathy was so excited to welcome her little girl to the world. The first days were rocky – Lindsey spent time the Intensive Care Unit. When the doctors finally let Lindsey go home, Cathy wasn’t convinced the tiny baby was ready. She wouldn’t eat and she was pale. Cathy was persistent and after three trips to her physician, the doctor referred Lindsey to Le Bonheur. It was there that cardiologists discovered that Lindsey was born with a coarctation of the aorta, a heart defect.

Doctors performed surgery when Lindsey was just four months old. She underwent a second surgery at 11 months to repair a ventricular septal defect (VSD), a hole in her heart. Today, looking at nine-year-old Lindsey you can’t tell that the little girl had such a rocky start to life. Lindsey runs an 8 minute 14 second mile, and she loves to play soccer, basketball and baseball.

Her recent claim to fame is that she was one of 15 children selected to appear in a series of television, radio and print ads for Le Bonheur’s fundraising campaign to build a new hospital. In a photo shoot last summer at Mud Island River Park, Lindsey was the pampered star. Stylists fixed her hair and helped select the perfect outfit for her début. “She was the only child at the photo shoot that day, so she felt like a queen. She loved it,” Cathy said.

When the ads were complete, Lindsey couldn’t wait to show them to all her friends. She took a DVD with the three commercials to school and to West Union Cumberland Presbyterian Church.

“I don’t think it’s gotten to her head, but it’s gotten to my head. I’m just so proud of her. She’s my hero,” mom Cathy said.

You can support Lindsey and other kids who are saved by our children's hospital by contributing to the Campaign to Build a New Le Bonheur.  Click here for more information about how you can make a difference in the lives of kids.

Click Here to read about more children who have benefited from Le Bonheur's excellent care.