Many times, we see or hear about the plight of those who have difficulties we can only imagine, but there seems to be nothing we can do to make their lives better. Thanks to the work of several Trenton residents involved in a Christian mission project in Haiti, the life of one little girl has been changed forever.
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Many times, we see or hear about the plight of those who have difficulties we can only imagine, but there seems to be nothing we can do to make their lives better. Thanks to the work of several Trenton residents involved in a Christian mission project in Haiti, the life of one little girl has been changed forever.
Lansey St. Surin, a five-year-old Haitian child, is currently living in Trenton with Steve and Marjorie Keuhn, enjoying preschool, new friends, new clothes, french fries and, most importantly, the ability to make sounds following surgery to remove polyps from her throat.
Lansey?s story begins in her native Haiti, in the town of Montrouis. The town, while about one-half the size of Trenton in terms of land area, holds twice the number of residents, according to Keuhn. Lansey and her mother were living like many Haitians – homeless (they were sleeping on a friend?s concrete porch) and hungry. The child?s mother brought her to a medical clinic at which Trenton resident Dr. J.A. Keuhn and his nephew, Dr. David Keuhn, son of R.W. and Twyla Keuhn of Trenton, were working. A tracheotomy had been performed on Lansey, but the doctors were unable to understand why the procedure had been performed. They examined her and when they removed the trach, she completely stopped breathing. It was quickly replaced, but they still had no idea why she had the trach, which had been put in place when she was three.
?They were able to get her medical records from Port-au-Prince and found out she has Recurring Respiratory Polyps,? explained Steve Keuhn. ?It is a virus that grows in the airway of the throat. They grow back like warts do. The doctors in Port-au-Prince had tried to remove them with forceps, had actually tried to snip them off, but that just made them grow back more aggressively.?
The missionary group, which includes several Trenton residents other than the Keuhns, such as Lu Littleton and Brad and Diane Ewing, began working to get her out of Haiti and to the U.S., where she could receive appropriate treatment.
In March, Steve Keuhn was back in Haiti when, late one afternoon, Lansey?s mother came running through the gate of the mission, holding a limp Lansey in her arms.
?She was screaming…she was frantic, just terrified,? he recalled. ?Lansey had been playing and somehow the trach had fallen out, so she couldn?t breathe. Her mother had gotten it back in, but the risk of infection was high. That?s when I called Lu (Littleton) and said ?we?ve got to get her out of here?.?
Another trip to Haiti was planned for late May or early June and since Keuhn already had Lansey?s medical records, he began the process of getting her to the states for treatment. The group had been talking with representatives of Children?s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City and the First Hand Foundation (operated through the Cerner Corporation) to help with the expense of the medical treatments.
When they returned in June, they still didn?t have the okay to bring her to the United States and it didn?t look like it was going to be an easy process.
?Tim Aument, the missionary at (Life Connection Mission) had been able to get a passport for her, but we needed to get a visa issued by the United States government. Everyone said we wouldn?t get one because we didn?t have a signed document saying that her care would be paid for without government assistance.
?So basically, I had to tell the mother that we probably weren?t going to be able to get her out. Her mother was devastated. Tim said we should go to the embassy and see, but we didn?t think we had a chance,? Keuhn recalled.
Then a miracle of sorts occurred. They got an appointment at the embassy and when they stepped up to the window to talk with the person, they could see numerous files stamped ?denied.? They weren?t deterred.
?She (the embassy representative) looked at Lansey and said ?I think she needs help.? She gave us a visa that day and we took her home with us on that trip.?
Keuhn and Brad Ewing called their wives from Miami and said, ?guess who we?re bringing home??
So, Lansey was on her way to the United States – without her mother – with people she barely knew, to a land she could have only dreamed about when compared to her own country. Her airplane ride was eventful as even the smallest things were foreign to her. For instance, when she flushed the toilet on the airplane she was afraid she was going down, too. After landing in Miami, she ate at Burger King and, when she couldn?t finish her order of French fries, she wrapped them in a napkin, not wanting to waste the leftovers. In Haiti, many children are lucky to have a cup of rice to eat, so throwing food away is unheard of.
On Aug. 5, Lansey had laser surgery at Northeast Regional Medical Center in Kirksville, where Dr. Mark Reader, a friend of Dr. Keuhn, performed the surgery at no cost. The hospital also agreed to not charge for the surgery. Mrs. Littleton, a surgical nurse at Wright Memorial Hospital, was allowed to be with Lansey during the surgery and observe the procedure.
Keuhn said Dr. Reader was surprised at the extent of the polyp growth in Lansey?s airway, noting that it was more severe than he had originally thought.
Following the surgery, Lansey went home with the Keuhns and and for the first time, they heard her speak.
?When she first came here, there was no sound, absolute silence,? Keuhn said. ?But when we brought her home from the surgery, she spoke.?
?It?s so funny, you?ll hear her yelling ?Greg! Greg!?,? said Mrs. Keuhn, referring to her son. ?She is breathing normally through her nose and mouth now. There have been some big experiences for her, things like smelling a flower and playing the harmonica. She doesn?t talk a lot but she does talk some.?
As part of her treatment, Lansey now has monthly injections (the second one is scheduled for today) which are designed to kill the virus that causes the polyps. The injections, which may or may not work, are expensive, but the group felt that they had come this far, so they wanted to try everything they could to ensure the success of the treatment. The goal, according to Keuhn, is to someday permanently remove the trach from her throat.
?We would love to see it come out permanently, but the problem is that if they take it out and the polyps grow back in Haiti, she could suffocate before she gets the help she?ll need,? he said.
Right now, Lansey is feeling good physically, but has a severe case of homesickness. Again, her American caretakers are doing everything they can to help her, arranging for her to fly home with out-of-state missionaries in the next week or so.
?Our plan is to send her home hopefully in the next week,? said Keuhn. ?She misses her mother and she needs to spend time with her. Then we?ll bring her back before the next injection and keep her here until they?re done, which should be the first part of November.?
When she does return home, Lansey will actually have a ?home? to which she can return. Thanks to the Life Connection Mission, she and her mother now have a one-room portion of a house, complete with a bed, table and chairs. She and her mother will have food and vitamins and Lansey will be able to attend school. In Haiti, the government does not pay for elementary school, so only children whose parents can afford to send them are allowed to go. Many times, only one child in the family will be chosen to attend school.
While the local residents involved in the mission have poured their hearts and resources into helping Lansey, they point out that others have helped during her stay, too. In addition to Dr. Reader and Northeast Regional Medical Center, Keuhn pointed out that Wright Memorial Hospital, Saint Luke?s Hospital and Dr. Tumanut (an ear, nose and throat specialist) also helped with Lansey?s care. She has spent time with several families, including the Littletons and the Ewings, who adopted two Haitian children, Brian and Kristi, earlier this year.
There are still needs to be met however, for both Lansey and others in Haiti. The Life Connection Mission has a large sponsorship program, providing a school for about 300 children in six grades. Sponsorships, which are $20 per month, provide education and a hot noon meal for the students. For more information, persons may contact Keuhn at 359-5354.