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“Why not us?”
Posted By katie allison granju
As the mother of a baby about the same age as little Klaire Sampson, I was really touched by her story. Klaire, who lives in Knoxville, is one of only 14 people in the entire world with a rare chromosomal disorder. Her parents talked to Yvette Martinez about learning to accept life as parents of a very special baby girl:
Klaire Sampson was born prematurely on January 14, 2007, but her complications were linked to more than an early birth.
“Dr. Guider calls back and says Klaire has an extra chromosome on her 14 chromosome and it’s an extremely rare condition. They really don’t know a whole lot about it, but it’s not good,” Randall Sampson recalls.
Klaire is one of only 6 people in the country, and 16 in the world with Trisomy 14.
“There are 3 chromosomes in the 14 spot and there are supposed to be 2,” Pediatrician Dr. Bud Guider explains….
The Sampson children have even taken their medical experiences with Klaire to the classroom. Twelve-year-old sister Kalli explained a trach to one community group using her doll.
“I was thinking on either changing the feeding tube or the trach because I’ve already done a speech on home health,” Kalli says.
Although Klaire can’t walk or talk, her life is already communicating so much.
“I like it whenever she starts to smile and everything, and she laughs… you can watch her laugh sometimes,” Kalli says.
Randall says he and his wife have changed the way they look at the challenges of having a child with special needs.
“Instead of asking why us, why not us?”
Feb 26th, 2008
