{"id":999,"date":"2021-04-15T16:01:32","date_gmt":"2021-04-15T16:01:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/prd-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/?p=999"},"modified":"2021-07-07T22:28:31","modified_gmt":"2021-07-07T22:28:31","slug":"brain-tumor-cant-stop-evangeline-from-spreading-joy-and-playing-pranks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/brain-tumor-cant-stop-evangeline-from-spreading-joy-and-playing-pranks\/","title":{"rendered":"Brain tumor can\u2019t stop Evangeline from spreading joy and playing pranks","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"
By Kortney Scroger<\/strong><\/div>\n
\n

The first thing you\u2019ll notice about Evangeline Lovie-Garcia, 9, is her infectious laugh. Pull a prank or tell a joke about bodily functions, and you\u2019re sure to hear it.<\/p>\n

When asked what got her through more than 100 days at Mary Bridge Children\u2019s Hospital, her answer is simple \u2014 \u201cjokes,\u201d Evangeline says.<\/p>\n

For about a year, Evangeline suffered from monthly migraines and disorientation that was serious enough that her family brought her to urgent care more than once. She was always assessed and then sent home to rest.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until January 2020 when she was seen at Mary Bridge Children\u2019s Emergency Department with flu-like symptoms that the source of her migraines was discovered.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a long night,\u201d Evangeline\u2019s mom, Wendy Lovie, says. \u201cI think we were there for about five hours \u2014 she was given an IV and taken for a CT scan. It was probably around three in the morning when they told us she had a mass in her head.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two days later, she had brain surgery.<\/p>\n

Her surgeon, Ronald Grondin, MD, removed as much of the mass as he could, and Evangeline seemed to be in the clear for the moment \u2014 until a couple days later when her stomach began to swell.<\/p>\n

After a series of tests, they discovered that due to her steroids, part of Evangeline\u2019s small intestine had burst, sending her back to the operating room.<\/p>\n

Because of her increasing length of stay, the Lovie-Garcia family, who lives in Orting, used the amenities at Tree House: A Place for Families for several weeks. The accommodations helped Evangeline\u2019s parents and younger sister to stay close by as she recovered.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was comforting to know that there was one less thing for me to think about,\u201d Wendy says. \u201cWhen you are in this situation, you’re thinking: meds, brain surgery and ‘x’ amount of days in the hospital. Finances and a place to sleep were my last concerns. It definitely helps to know that there are people out there that are willing to lift a little bit of the weight from your shoulders.\u201d<\/p>\n

Evangeline powered through two surgeries, but a difficult journey was still ahead of her. Because of the location of her tumor, her ability to swallow, her gag reflex and many other natural reflexes were impacted. This left her with a tracheostomy, a gastrostomy tube and the need to learn a lot of basic skills, like walking, all over again.<\/p>\n

To help motivate Evangeline, her care team created charts listing everything she could still do on her own as a means of encouragement and empowerment.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe started therapies as soon as she could lift a finger and understand what was being said to her,\u201d Wendy says.<\/p>\n

According to Wendy, it\u2019s these staff members who made Mary Bridge Children\u2019s special \u2014 from the nurses who were always making sure Evangeline was on their rotation to the doctors who made the whole family comfortable and kept everyone informed regarding her care.<\/p>\n

Then there was one of Evangeline\u2019s favorites \u2014 Jesse Bartlett.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvangeline is a practical joker at heart and that means we have a lot in common,\u201d Child Life Specialist Jesse Bartlett, says. \u201cShe loves to hear jokes, tell jokes and play jokes on everyone \u2014 her family, nurses, doctors, anyone who provided care for her. Her smile and her laughter really showed her love of life and her resilience in the face of a long and difficult hospitalization.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jesse is part of the Mary Bridge Children\u2019s Child Life Services team. Child Life is a donor-supported program that aims to minimize the stress and anxiety children and families may experience during medical care and long hospitalizations.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvangeline faced so many challenges and several different surgeries with a lot of unknowns involved,\u201d Jesse says. \u201cShe struggled to learn how to express herself after having her tracheostomy placed and needed to rely on others for a lot of her basic needs. She constantly amazed me at her ability to cope with all the uncertainties and changes in her life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Evangeline and her family decided to pay back the kindness they were shown this past year by hosting a Mary Bridge Children\u2019s Toy Drive for her ninth birthday. Evangeline\u2019s dad, Barry, asked colleagues for donations, and they ended up having to rent a van for all the toys that appeared.<\/p>\n

The road ahead<\/strong><\/p>\n

Evangeline\u2019s road to recovery is far from over. Today, she still has her tracheostomy and requires a lot of medical attention. But, she\u2019s working hard in her weekly therapy appointments and is making incredible progress, always with a joke at the ready.<\/p>\n

\u201cThanks to many therapies and amazing surgeons, Evangeline has regained her ability to eat by mouth, talk and even walk with assistance,\u201d Wendy says. \u201cIt’s been a long journey, but little by little, we\u2019re moving forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gifts to Mary Bridge Children\u2019s Foundation support programs like Child Life Services and Tree House: A Place for Families that were central to Evangeline and her family\u2019s care experience. You can champion children like her by making a donation today.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Kortney Scroger The first thing you\u2019ll notice about Evangeline Lovie-Garcia, 9, is her infectious laugh. Pull a prank or tell a joke about bodily functions, and you\u2019re sure to hear it. When asked what got her through more than 100 days at Mary Bridge Children\u2019s Hospital, her answer is simple \u2014 \u201cjokes,\u201d Evangeline says. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"author":107,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[67,75,79],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-999","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kids-health","category-foundations","category-profiles-stories"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBrain tumor can\u2019t stop Evangeline from spreading joy and playing pranks - MultiCare Vitals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/brain-tumor-cant-stop-evangeline-from-spreading-joy-and-playing-pranks\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Brain tumor can\u2019t stop Evangeline from spreading joy and playing pranks - MultiCare Vitals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Kortney Scroger The first thing you\u2019ll notice about Evangeline Lovie-Garcia, 9, is her infectious laugh. 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