Girl serves March of Dimes

By Travina Coleman
Phoenix Features Writer

May 03, 2008 07:47 pm

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Blazing a path through life as vibrant as the color of her curls, Katie Jo Taylor, 2, of Tahlequah was not expected to make the crucial first steps as a toddler.
Jennifer Taylor, Katie Jo’s mother, said her first pregnancy was without problem. Her second however, has given her the emotional roller coaster ride of a lifetime.
“She was born three months premature,” Jennifer said. “She weighed 2 pounds, 7 ounces.”
Tearing apart a chocolate chip brownie, with a black plastic knife, Katie Jo is quick to let her mother know what she wants.
“She is very selective,” Jennifer said. “She likes to tell me about it too.”
Katie Jo has been given the honor of serving as the March of Dimes Ambassador for 2008.
The March for Babies Walk is scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday, March 17, at Honor Heights Park. Walkers are marching to raise money for the program that helps fund research and medicines for premature babies.
This money will provide grants to neonatal intensive care units and nurses nationwide.
Jennifer said a week before Katie Jo’s unexpected birth, she had some issues with kidney stones during her pregnancy and had received a steroid shot for it.
“A week later my blood pressure spiked,” she said. “The doctor told me to expect her within 24 to 48 hours.”
Katie Jo was born that afternoon.
“We were overwhelmed with concern,” Jennifer said. “We had to wait 24 hours to see her the first time. It was hard. She was given a 60 to 65 percent chance of survival.”
Doctors had prepared Jennifer and her husband Jason for the worst.
“They said if she survived she would have an enormous amount of health problems,” she said.
Jennifer said it was the hardest thing she ever had to do.
“I couldn’t help feeling guilty about not really wanting to get attached to her,” she said. “I was so afraid of losing her.”
But Katie Jo is a fighter, with an equally fiery personality to match her mane.
Katie Jo inherited her red hair from her maternal grandfather — a fact argued by her sister, Madison, 5, who points out her grandfather is no longer a redhead.
“He has white hair,” Madison said.
Since Katie Jo’s release from the hospital, she has had just a couple of stays in the hospital.
Jennifer said doctors don’t believe her when she tells them Katie Jo was premature.
“She is thriving and has no issues right now,” Jennifer said. “She has no developmental delay, and she is keeping me on my toes. Don’t get me wrong, I know prayers helped, but I also know God works through people like the March of Dimes — I know it saved her.”

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