Cardinals visit does more than simply brighten day of Shriners Hospital patients

I think it could probably go without saying that the best thing about working for Shriners Hospitals for Children is the privilege of getting to know the kids who receive their medical care here. As the PR Director for the hospital, I've gotten to know quite a few kiddos who are some of the funniest and silliest and smartest kids anyone could ever meet. Not to mention the most resilient, mature and strong.

I think that's why I love it so much when celebrities, like the St. Louis Cardinals, come to visit our hospital. It gives me - and my coworkers who are these children's nurses, therapists, and care givers - such a thrill to see them meet their heroes. To see the looks on their faces when a famous ballplayer they've seen on television comes to the hospital to see THEM... well, it can be such a "game changer" for some of our kids that it gives me goosebumps. Every time.

Today, Skip Schumaker, Kyle Lohse, and Nick Punto took time out of their busy days - and a game day at that - to visit the patients at Shriners Hospitals for Children. Lohse's wife, Gabrielle, and Punto's wife, Natalie, also joined them, as did Fredbird and his crazy antics. And today, without realizing it, they potentially changed the way one special young lady, 13-year-old Katie, sees herself.

This summer, Katie's parents threw her a big party, but it wasn't for her birthday. It was to say good-bye to her left leg. Katie had a medical condition that left her with two choices: fuse her knee permanently, or amputate her leg above her knee. With quiet bravery and determination, and, according to her parents, without ever second-guessing herself, she chose amputation. (With an admirable ability to look to her future, she said, "How will I ever be able to drive a car if I can't bend my knee?").

After a summer of pain through surgeries, prosthetic fittings and physical therapy, Katie finally got to come to the hospital to do something fun today: to meet the Cardinals. She got each player's autograph - on her new prosthetic leg. As she left today with a huge smile on her face, I could only imagine her return to school today and showing off her new autographs to her classmates.

I just have to say thank you to Skip, Kyle and Nick. You probably thought you'd do a nice thing to pose for pictures, sign autographs and brighten the day of kids in the hospital. But you did way more than that today. You turned a prosthetic leg into so much more than a device to help Katie walk. It's now a point of pride for her: a collector's item and a conversation piece - one that starts a conversation about baseball and celebrities, rather than disabilities.

I don't think any of the kids in Katie's class will look at her leg with pity after today. Now that's a real game changer!