31 May The Cole Family
On February 25th, Retired Rochester Police Department Officer Dennis Cole checked into the House within the Hospital (HWTH). He was tired and overwhelmed following one of the longest and most traumatic days of his life. His newborn daughter, Mireya Rose, was rushed to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and his wife, Mary, was intubated in the adult Intensive Care Unit following a very complicated birth. The staff at HWTH quickly took Dennis in, taking the time to listen to his worst fears and deep-rooted hopes. At that very moment, he immediately became a part of the RMHCR family in our home-away-from-home on the 5th floor of the hospital.
Dennis patiently spent his days running between both ICU’s visiting his wife and daughter. On March 5th, Mary recovered enough to be discharged from the hospital and Dennis checked out of his bedroom at HWTH, but the journey wasn’t over. Dennis and Mary continued to visit the HWTH on our Guest Pass Program until Mireya Rose was discharged on April 15th. Our Guest Pass Program allows families to enjoy all the amenities of the HWTH without an overnight stay.
The picture taken above was taken on their day of discharge. They were finally leaving together.
Dennis wrote a beautiful story about his experience. Below you will find an excerpt of his writing. While we cannot predict the future, we know, no matter the challenge, miracles happen.
“If one variable is changed from this event, I’m convinced that my wife, or daughter or both of them would have died. The planning, staging of medical staff and execution of the plan all worked. Looking back on this little child’s life, I’m truly amazed. We are devout Christians and believe that Gods hands are always there. If you were wondering where He was on February 23 at 11:15 pm, I will let you know. He was with ALL of us and guiding us through this miraculous delivery. Each of us could have been somewhere else, doing some other thing that night. I almost slept downstairs for a little more peace and quiet, but God needed me upstairs next to my wife. Al Michaels for ABC Sports said it best in 1980 when the underdog USA Hockey team beat Russia. “Do you believe in Miracles? Yes. Yes”. This is the story of Mireya Rose Cole. One of Gods great Miracles.”