Bob, Liz, Melissa, Jessica and Robby Koczot

May 19, 2007 was any parents’ worst nightmare… our 12-year-old daughter Jessica suffered a life-threatening hemorrhage. She was rushed to the ER with severe bleeding, and her hemoglobin reached a dangerous low of 6, requiring a blood transfusion immediately. I tried so hard to stay under control, praying the doctors would not ask me to leave her side as she asked ‘Mommy, am I going to be ok?’ The blood transfusions began, but the bleeding didn’t stop. Saturday, the nightmare continued, as more red blood cells were transfused, but the hemorrhaging would not stop. On Sunday, a dear friend delivered the message at all three services to our Church family at Glad Tidings: ‘We need your prayers, we need a miracle.’ Our prayers were answered, as doctors determined the next step, which was a transfer to the ICU, and then to surgery for an arterial embolization. The bleeding finally stopped, but a few additional transfusions were required. The doctors at Hershey Medical Center, and at The Reading Hospital and Medical Center, are still trying to research the cause of what happened to our daughter. She required a total of nine units of red blood cells, and four units of fresh frozen plasma. We are extremely grateful to have our daughter, and cannot thank enough our doctors for their efforts; our family and friends for their prayers and outpouring of support; and the donors of Miller-Keystone Blood Center for giving the gift of life. On September 22, we held our first blood drive in Jessica’s honor, to increase awareness of the importance of blood donation. On that day, our daughter had the honor of writing down her parents’ names as first-time blood donors. You never know when you or a loved one will ever need blood. Thank you for being heroes!