Mother Writes Book About Brave Young Girl For Her Daughter Born With Rare Birth Defects
By Kathy Walsh
DENVER (CBS4) - A Denver mother has written a book called "Legend." It's about a brave young girl, who has just one foot and seven fingers. She fights an evil darkness by taking matters into her own hands.
Julie McAlpin wrote the story for her daughter who was born with a rare disorder called amniotic band syndrome. It can be fatal, but Brigitta Hockett is 18-months-old, feisty, tenacious and her parents' pride and joy.
Health Specialist Kathy Walsh met baby Brigitta as she happily pushed a toy walker in her doctor's office in a hallway called "The Road To Get Up And Go." Her proud parents, Julie and Steve, watched their 18-month-old make walking look easy, even though Brigitta was born without a left foot.
Back in January 2016, OB/GYN Dr. Matt Breeden, had placed McAlpin on bed rest at Presbyterian/St. Luke's Medical Center (PSL). Brigitta was born January 30, 2016, ten weeks early and weighing just 2 pounds, 2 ounces.
She had amniotic band syndrome. Her legs and fingers were tangled in strands of the amniotic sac.
"That little filmy band wound around as she was moving and it just got so tight that it cut off the blood supply," explained pediatric orthopedic surgeon Dr. Laurel Benson.
Her left foot and three fingers were amputated in the womb. Dr. Benson operated at the Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children to release the banding and save Brigitta's right foot.
Dr. Jan Kennaugh cared for the baby at the Level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at RMHC, the largest Level IV NICU in the Rocky Mountain region. Brigitta was there for about five weeks and then "graduated" to the Level II NICU where she spent another two weeks.
"She was strong, she was determined. You could tell she had fiery eyes from the beginning," said McAlpin.
"With that attitude, you can do whatever you want," said Steve Hockett, Brigitta's father.
Ten minutes after her daughter was born, McAlpin wrote the book "Legend" about a young heroine who loses a foot and 3 fingers.
Parts of it read, "The fish of the seas gave her a fan to use in place of the foot when she wanted to swim across the seas amongst the fish and the mermaids. And the birds of the skies gave her feathers she might use in place of her fingers when she wanted to fly through the clouds."
With her parents' positivity, Brigitta will travel "The Road To Get Up And Go" and never look back.
The book, Legend, by Julie McAlpin, will be available soon at Tattered Cover Book Store.
Kathy Walsh is CBS4's Weekend Anchor and Health Specialist. She has been with CBS4 for more than 30 years. She is always open to story ideas. Follow Kathy on Twitter @WalshCBS4.
