Katelynn's Story

Katelynn’s earliest hours presented unexpected medical challenges for her and her family. While Katelynn was still in the womb, her mom, Tiffany, contracted Fifth Disease, a condition that causes serious bodily rash and severe complications in pregnant women.  Tiffany’s illness in turn caused Katelynn to become anemic prompting two emergency blood transfusions for Katelynn prior to her birth.  She was born 14 weeks early on May 4, 2008 and was quickly transferred to the neonatal intensive care unit at Children’s Hospital at Erlanger for treatment and care.

The Harris family spent a few days in a nearby hotel prior to coming to the Ronald McDonald House.

“It is a blessing to be here (at the Ronald McDonald House), especially with the stressful life that I do have. Everyone asks how is everything going, how is the baby doing and is there anything we can do for you? You definitely don’t get that at a hotel,” says Tiffany Harris

Tiffany, a Meigs County schoolteacher and her husband, Chris, a firefighter, have two other children, six year old, Madelyn and 4 year old, Gracie.  Katelynn’s early arrival and extended hospital stay, forced the family to rely on relatives to help take care of the older girls back at home.

The Harris family says their 3 month stay at the Ronald McDonald House has meant more to them than they ever imagined because they were able to stay within minutes of Katelynn at a safe and comfortable “home away from home."  The House also made it possible for them to enjoy a family dinner with their older daughters during the weekends.

 “You never realize that anything is going to happen, I feel guilty that I didn’t contribute more (to the Ronald McDonald House), but now things are going to change. We want to give back and say thank you for having your doors open,” she continued.

The family says having access to the Ronald McDonald Family Room located on the 3^rd floor of Children’s Hospital at Erlanger was also important for them during Katelynn’s heart surgery just a few weeks after her birth.